A sharp bounce

Today’s news headlines:

‘Trump considers fast-tracking UK Covid-19 vaccine before US election’. The US President is considering bypassing normal regulatory standards to bring an experimental coronavirus vaccine to Americans ahead of this autumn’s election. The vaccine, being developed in a partnership between AstraZeneca and Oxford university, is being tested in a relatively small UK study of 10,000 volunteers, but if successful, the Trump administration wants to make it available in October. (Financial Times)

‘UK set for record-breaking economic growth in third-quarter’. New data on total consumer spending—including leisure—in the first two weeks of August suggests that the UK’s will bounce back from its historically bad Q2 recession. City of London economists predict that GDP could rise 14.3% in Q3, regaining 55% of the 20.4% fall from the previous quarter, with consumer spending currently exceeding the same period one year earlier. However, the scale of the economic bounce is vulnerable to a rise in new coronavirus cases and the impending wind-down of the furlough scheme. (Financial Times)

Today's events, rates, and data 

• US and European equity index futures rose, tracking a rise in Asian stocks overnight, after private reassurances from President Trump’s team that US companies can still do business with Tencent’s WeChat. The Dollar has steadied against other major currencies as traders await the start of this year’s Jackson Hole symposium on Thursday. 

Today's events

NZ Retail Sales: -14.6% vs -1.2% previously
NZ Core Retail Sales: -13.7% vs 0.1% previously
China CB Leading Index: 2.00pm

Interbank rates:

GBP/USD: 1.3110
GBP/EUR: 1.1105
EUR/USD: 1.1805
USD/CAD: 1.3160