Wednesday, June 1, 2022

5 things to start your day

Good morning. Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as Meta's COO, a warning from Jamie Dimon, Biden may visit Saudi Arabia, and Hungary throws E

Good morning. Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as Meta's COO, a warning from Jamie Dimon, Biden may visit Saudi Arabia, and Hungary throws EU another obstacle. Here's what people are talking about. 

Leaning Out

Meta Platforms' Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as chief operating officer, but will remain on the board of the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Javier Olivan will replace Sandberg, who joined Facebook in 2008 and served as the highest-profile face of the company next to Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg. Her departure, while already anticipated for some time, occurred at a perilous moment just as the social media giant faces some of its biggest challenges.

Hurricane Warning

Jamie Dimon warned investors to prepare for an economic "hurricane" as the economy struggles against an unprecedented combination of challenges, including tightening monetary policy and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "That hurricane is right out there down the road coming our way," the JPMorgan chief executive officer said at a conference Wednesday. "We don't know if it's a minor one or Superstorm Sandy. You better brace yourself." Last month he said that there were "storm clouds" looming over the US economy, but said he's since updated that forecast given the challenges faced by the Federal Reserve as it attempts to rein in inflation. 

Biden May Visit Saudi

US President Joe Biden is likely to visit Saudi Arabia later this month as part of an international trip for NATO and Group of Seven meetings, as record high US gas prices weigh on his party's political prospects. Biden would almost inevitably meet its effective ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, whom the US president blames for the 2018 murder of a US-based columnist in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate. Pressure has grown on Biden to relent to a meeting with Bin Salman as US gasoline prices have spiraled to record highs during his administration. 

Hungary Demands

Hungary raised new or already rejected demands that presented an obstacle to European Union's efforts to approve a partial ban on Russian oil imports, sinking a push to clinch a deal Wednesday. EU ambassadors may meet again on Thursday to try to green light the bloc's sixth sanctions package that would target Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Sanctions in the EU require the unanimous consent of its 27 nations and Hungary has blocked the latest package of measures for weeks as it sought assurances its energy supplies wouldn't be disrupted.

Coming Up…

European stock futures nudged higher, while Asian equities fell as investors assessed the path forward for policy tightening. OPEC+ ministers meet to discuss supply. The UK kicks off a four-day bank holiday weekend to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, or 70 years on the throne for the 96-year-old monarch. Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester discusses the economic outlook at a virtual event. Expected data include Swiss CPI inflation for May. CrowdStrike, Lululemon and Hormel are among the companies scheduled to report results.

What We've Been Reading

This is what's caught our eye over the past 24 hours. 

And finally, here's what Cormac is interested in this morning

At least one bear market rally in global markets looks to be over -- that in the yen. After a brief recovery that lasted just under a month, a fresh wave of selling has re-emerged in the Japanese currency as Treasury yields push higher. The dollar-yen rebounded off a key technical support level -- its 50-day moving average -- and is back heading toward a fresh 20-year high.

A gauge of momentum in the move -- the relative strength index -- is still in neutral territory, bolstering speculation that the yen could soon hit the closely-watched 135 per dollar level. That would once again heap pressure on Japanese officials to intervene in the currency market, as in the current environment the weak yen is seen as a drag on the economy, rather than a traditional boost.

Still, much will depend on the path of Treasury yields, which many commentators have suggested have seen a peak. Yen traders will watch closely if benchmark US yields can climb much past the 3% level, which would increase pressure on the Japanese currency -- still the worst of the majors this year.

Cormac Mullen is a Deputy Managing Editor in the Markets team for Bloomberg News in Tokyo.

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