Today's news headlines:

‘Biden says US military will defend Taiwan from China attack’. During a press briefing in Tokyo, US President Joe Biden claimed the US military would defend Taiwan if China invaded the region. Previously, the US has maintained ‘strategic ambiguity’ on the Taiwan situation to minimise the risk of conflict with China. Beijing’s top diplomat responded, ‘If the US insists on playing the Taiwan card and goes further and further down the wrong road, it will certainly lead to a dangerous situation’ (Bloomberg)

‘As Johnson faces parties verdict, cost of living crisis spirals’. This week, Sue Gray is expected to publish her report on the ‘party-gate’ scandal. At the same time, Boris Johnson prepares for warnings that the cost of living crisis is spiralling out of control. The Prime Minister wants to draw a line under the scandal and focus on soaring household bills, especially as Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has warned that the surge in food costs could have ‘apocalyptic’ consequences for the poorest households. (Bloomberg)

Today

US and European equity futures climbed after US President Biden signalled China tariffs imposed by Donald Trump could be reversed. Treasury yields ticked higher along with metals prices, supporting antipodean currencies while the US Dollar weakened on a trade-weighted basis.

Events

UK Rightmove House Price Index YoY (May): 10.2% (prev. 9.9%)
German IFO Economic Sentiment Surveys (May): 9:00AM
Chicago Fed National Activity Index (Apr): 1:30PM

Interbank rates:
​​​​​​​
GBP/USD – 1.2565
GBP/EUR – 1.1857
EUR/USD – 1.0597
USD/CAD – 1.2786

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