Headlines Mar 3

​Metals

Aluminum hit the highest level in almost a decade in China

Gold Declines as Treasury Yields Rise and ETF Rout Deepens

ETFs Cut Gold Holdings for 12th Straight Day

Tsingshan Agrees to Supply Nickel for Batteries to Huayou, CNGR

Steel Rallies to 2011 High in China on Clean-Air Buzz Before NPC

Steel CEOs See Demand Surge Building Amid Pandemic Recovery

China Tangshan Tightens Steel Output Curbs on Pollution: Mysteel

European Steelmakers Jump as Rebar Climbs to Near 10-Year High

U.S. Issues Final Findings in Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet Probe

 

Oil

Crude Oil Rises Ahead of Critical OPEC+ Meeting on Supply Curbs

Crude Storage in Europe’s ARA Lowest Since May: Genscape

Abu Dhabi Will Lift Destination Restrictions on All Oil Grades

After the Big Texas Freeze, Russian Oil May Feel the Warmth

Turkey Regulator Starts Probe Against Some Fuel Distributors

South Korea to Import Saudi Arabian LPG to Make Blue Hydrogen

Novorossiysk Oil Loadings Continue Amid Storm Alert: Transneft

Exxon Mobil to Cut Jobs in Singapore as Big Oil Retrenches

India Set for Record Oil Demand on Recovery From Covid Washout

Iran Taps Old Customers; U.S. Buyers Make Rare Foray

Brazilian Crude Exports Rebound; Mexican Isthmus

OPEC+ May Roll Back 500,000 Barrels a Day Into Market

Saudi Arabia to Signal March End to 1M B/D Output Cut: RBC

OPEC+ Has ‘Perfect Opportunity’ to Add 750,000 Barrels, ANZ Says

Singapore Gasoline Cracks to Ease Before Rising Again by 3Q: FGE

 

Events & Synopsis

U.S. stock futures are Indicates a positive open, mirroring gains in Asian and European markets as risk appetite returns with investors’ focus shifting to stimulus-driven recovery and away from rising bond yields

The Senate is planning to formally debate on a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill as soon as this afternoon

Biden Relief Plan Faces Senate Hurdle With Debate Poised to Open

Germany Says Astra Shot Helps Elderly; Biden Goals

Biden Vaccine Breakthrough Muted by Pandemic’s Staying Power

Citibank Seeks Freeze on Erroneous Transfers During Appeal

GM-Backed Cruise Said to Be in Talks to Buy Startup Voyage

New York Warns Hedge Funds to Pay Taxes ‘Like Everybody Else’

Greensill Starts U.K. Insolvency Process as Deal Talks Continue

German Regulator Close to Freezing Greensill Bank Payments

Credit Suisse’s Greensill Issue Not Comparable to H2O: JPMorgan

ECB Said to See No Need for Drastic Action to Rein in Yields

Prudential Says U.S. Unit Will Be Spun Off in Second Quarter

White House Withdraws Neera Tanden’s Nomination as OMB Chief

Air-Taxi Startup Volocopter Boosts Funds in Race to Get Flying

U.S. Says Rockets Hit Iraq Base Hosting Coalition Troops

Tokyo Olympics to Exclude Overseas Spectators, Mainichi Says

Samsung Details Plans for $17 Billion Chip Facility in U.S.

Steel Rallies to 2011 High in China on Clean-Air Buzz Before NPC

Bitcoin Rebounds Back to $50,000 as Risk Appetite Returns

Kempharm Surges More Than 80% After FDA Approves ADHD Drug

Senate Confirms Rouse to Head Biden Council of Economic Advisers

EU Vaccine Passports for Travel Are Months Away

Merkel Bows to Public Pressure and Backs Easing of Lockdown

Stockholm Hit by 100% Spike in Covid Cases in Just 3 Weeks

Employers May Face Fines Under Draft EU Gender Pay Gap Rules

London’s Deserted Offices Could Gain 25% Over Next Five Years

KKR Adds to Health-Care Flurry With Nordic Bioscience Stake

Asia Stocks Jump as Tencent, Casino Shares Spur Hong Kong Bounce

China Revs Up Grand Chip Ambitions to Counter U.S. Blacklistings

China Hacking India Port as Part of Shadow War, U.S. Firm Says

Australian Attorney-General Porter Denies 1988 Rape Claim

Goldman to Swell to Record Size in Singapore With Tech Hires

 

10:00am: Senate Finance Committee weighs nominations of Xavier Becerra for Secretary of Health and Human Services, Wally Adeyemofor Deputy Secretary of the Treasury and Katherine Tai for U.S. Trade Representative

10am: Fed’s Harker Discusses Equitable Workforce Discovery

11:00am: White House Covid-19 response team holds briefing

11:50am: Vice President Harris visits woman-owned small business in Alexandria, Va. to discuss pandemic, need for stimulus legislation

12pm: Fed’s Bostic Discusses an Inclusive Economy

12:30pm: Press Sec. Jen Psaki holds press briefing

1pm: Fed’s Evans Discusses the Economic Outlook

1:45pm: President Biden holds bipartisan meeting on cancer

2pm: U.S. Federal Reserve Releases Beige Book

5pm: President Biden participates in virtual event with the House Democratic Caucus

6pm: Harris swears in Gina Raimondo as Commerce Secretary

 

 

Forex

A gauge of the dollar swung between losses and gains and Treasuries slipped as focus turned back to the stimulus-fueled recovery from the pandemic

Stocks rose with U.S. equity futures. Oil prices advanced ahead of an OPEC+ meeting

Greenback was mixed against its Group-of-10 peers

The euro briefly jumped to $1.2113, the highest level this week, and 10-year Bund yields rose after officials familiar with internal discussions said ECB policy makers see no need for drastic action to combat rising bond yields

The pound strengthened against the dollar and the euro before Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveils his budget, where he’s set to announce further fiscal support to the U.K. economy

U.K. service industries reported the quickest acceleration in inflation in a year, with rises in the cost of fuel and shipping

Australian dollar was steady near large FX option strikes at 0.7825 due March 4, muting bullish reaction to Q4 GDP data that topped most estimates

Norway’s krone led G-10 gains as oil prices rebounded after a three-day fall, with the OPEC+ alliance said to be poised to agree an output increase at its meeting this week in a sign of the market’s underlying resilience as the impact of the pandemic ebbs

Consumers in the world’s largest economies amassed $2.9 trillion in extra savings during Covid-related lockdowns, a vast cash hoard that creates the potential for a powerful recovery from the pandemic recession

The EU is still months away from issuing Covid-19 immunity certificates, raising the risk of another lost tourism season for the bloc’s aviation and hospitality industries

Italy is making its first foray into the green bond market, the latest major debt issuer to tap into one of the fastest-growing sectors of finance. The nation is selling debt maturing in 2045 via banks, an unusual tenor that is expected to draw interest from domestic investors as well as specialist environmental funds. European nations are piling into the market as they seek to finance a greener recovery from the pandemic

Chancellor Angela Merkel backed a relaxation of coronavirus restrictions despite a stubbornly high infection rate, acknowledging that many Germans are weary of curbs on daily life after months of lockdown