Market Commentary: Wednesday 11th March

Oil held below $90 a barrel after a report on the proposed release of oil reserves to ease higher energy prices boosted market confidence, following recent volatility across assets. Brent crude fell 0.2% after plunging 11% in the prior session. Markets have stayed choppy as oil suffered its steepest one-day slide in four years on Tuesday after mixed signals from the Trump administration on the Iran war.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.2%, gaining for a second day, as the Wall Street Journal reported that the International Energy Agency proposed the largest crude reserve release in its history. Equities curbed some of their gains after the Financial Times reported that JPMorgan Chase & Co. told private credit lenders that it marked down the value of some loans, clamping down on its lending as worries mount over credit quality.

Treasuries rose ahead of the release of the US inflation report later Wednesday, while the dollar slid for a fourth consecutive day.

Today we have US CPI, with minimal change forecast compared with the previous month’s values.

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