Morning Bid Europe-Could consumers keep the Fed on hold, while Japan hikes?
SPY•Markets weigh U.S. consumer slowdown, Japan rate-hike bets
Aug. 17 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Tom Westbrook.
The indomitable U.S. consumer may finally have taken a beat, and Friday's figures showing the first fall in U.S. retail sales for nine months will put the spotlight on earnings at Walmart and Home Depot this week, along with the AI spending boom.
On Monday in Asia the dollar was the main mover, slipping broadly as traders have an unfamiliar outlook. Rate hikes are priced in Europe and Japan next month, while the retail figures swung the market's U.S. outlook further in favour of a hold.
The Aussie and kiwi notched two-month tops while sterling and the euro were not far from multi-month highs either. FRX/
In holiday-thinned trade, the won KRW= made no obvious reaction to U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday ordering the Pentagon to "substantially reduce" military exercises with South Korea.
Alphabet GOOGL.O has banks working on an inaugural Aussie dollar bond sale, a bookrunner message said on Monday, the latest sign of hyperscalers looking beyond the U.S. to fund their massive capital expenditures on computing.
