All about the spin

Today’s news headlines:

‘Travellers from France added to UK quarantine list’. The UK government has changed its coronavirus guidelines which means travellers from France, the Netherlands, Monaco, Aruba, Turks and Caicos, and Malta must now quarantine for 14 days. French officials are considering retaliation as many thousands of Brits rush to return before the Saturday deadline. Boris Johnson is putting an objective spin on it, claiming that it is entirely data-driven. (Financial Times)

‘Israel and United Arab Emirates strike historic peace accord’. With the help of the US, Israel and the UAE have reached a peace agreement which means that Israel will cease annexation in the West Bank. Not everyone was delighted by this news; Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has recalled his UAE Ambassador in reaction to ‘this disgraceful declaration’. From the Palestinian perspective, this agreement recognises Israel’s claim to many contested holy sites and territories. The US President is overjoyed at the PR win since he is trailing in the polls in the fast-approaching election. (Financial Times)

Today's events, rates, and data 

• Yesterday was a quieter session with just a bit of movement but nothing of note. Focus remains on the news, particularly Trump's several new gambits for election victory (he’s not boring, we’ll give him that) and US data out later today. All in all, a quiet end to the week expected, which is more or less what we expect from August.

Today's events

CN Fixed Asset Investment  YTD/Y: -1.6% vs -3.1% last month
CN Industrial Production Y/Y: 4.8% vs 4.8% last month
CN Retail Sales Y/Y: -1.1% vs -1.8% last month
JP Tertiary Industrial Activity: 7.9% vs -2.9% last month
EU Flash Employment Change q/q: 10:00 AM
EU Flash GDP q/q: 10:00 AM
US Retail Sales m/m: 1:30 PM
US Industrial Production m/m: 2:15 PM
US University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment: 3:00 PM

Interbank rates:

GBP/USD – 1.3050
GBP/EUR – 1.1050
EUR/USD – 1.1800
USD/CAD – 1.3225