Today's news headlines: 

‘Biden expects Russia to ‘move in’ on Ukraine; warns of sanctions’. US President Joe Biden marked his first year in office by stating that he thinks Russia will ‘move in’ on Ukraine after the Kremlin accumulated 100,000 troops on the border. Biden warned that Russia would ‘pay a stiff price, immediately, short-term, medium-term and long-term’ in the event of invasion. However, European nations are still undecided on an appropriate response to invasion; heavy sanctions could be economically harmful to the continent as it faces an energy crisis and is reliant on gas supplies from Russia. (Bloomberg)

‘Johnson rebuffs calls to quit as loyalists rally round’. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had clear support from Tory benches in Parliament yesterday as he faced further calls to resign following the ‘partygate’ scandal. Johnson has so far refused to step down as PM, with an official investigation led by Sue Gray getting underway. Meanwhile, he faces a growing list of letters of no confidence from MPs. The closely guarded number needs to reach 54 before a vote of no confidence is triggered. (Bloomberg)

Today

US and European equity futures rose overnight following a strong session in Asia led by Hong Kong tech stocks. Treasury yields were steady while oil prices remain at multi-year highs.

Events

Australian Unemployment Rate (Dec): 4.2% (est. 4.5%)
Eurozone Consumer Price Index YoY (Dec): 10:00AM
US Initial Jobless Claims (Jan 15th): 1:30PM
Japanese CPI YoY (Dec): 11:30PM

Interbank rates:

GBP/USD – 1.3635
GBP/EUR – 1.2000
EUR/USD – 1.1363
USD/CAD – 1.2487

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