Morning Update – 21/11/2016 – by Arjun Lakhanpal

Morning all.. Wall St closed a little lower on Friday; down 0.24% after a choppy week but again all the action in bonds and FX markets. In Asia this morning we saw little movement in any asset markets with Nikkei up 0.77% as USDJPY held gains and extended above 111.00. Oil was higher again with WTI up about 1% as OPEC leaders gather in Vienna this week and many hoping for some agreement on output. EUR mildly supported as Merkel confirms she will run for 4th term as Chancellor in 2017 elections; wants to serve full 4yr term.. However Sarkozy is out of the running in French Primaries: prelim figures: Fillon 44.2%, Juppe 28.5% and Sarkozy 20.6%; Sarkozy concedes defeat, says will vote for Fillon in 2nd round of primaries; Fillon/Juppe advance to Nov 27 runoff. Le Penn has also done well. Austrian Chancellor: Le Pen victory in France would badly damage European economy.. UK Chancellor: upcoming budget plan will not have big new spending push due to  “eye-wateringly high” levels of public debt & significant budget deficit; do not have unlimited capacity to borrow for spending; need to address long-standing productivity challenge in UK.. Japan Govt considering interim 2017 fiscal budget that includes elevated role for fiscal policy; fiscal policy should be used together with monetary policy more than in the past; notes that improving wage & employment conditions require policies to sustain the gains.. This morning we have no data.. Good luck..