Stock markets around the world have paused overnight and into this morning. US index futures and the Nikkei are down slightly while the FTSE and Dax are up slightly.
Overnight news flow was relatively light. In terms of earnings, First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) beat the street while Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) disappointed. This morning Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN) reported big earnings and a big deal with BMW (DE:BMWG). Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) reports after the close today. UK GDP was revised down to 2.0% from 2.2% but this has had only a minor impact on GBP.
Political concerns swirling around Europe continue to impact currency trading. EUR is under pressure today, falling toward $1.0500 against USD. Meanwhile, defensive plays gold and JPY are on the rise again. CAD is down slightly against USD ahead of this morning's Canada retail sales report.
Today's main event for potential trading action is the release of minutes from the last Fed meeting with traders looking for hints as to whether a rate hike could be coming in March or not. Fed speakers this week have generally been indicating the central bank remains on course for 3 increases this year. Overnight, however, SF Fed President Williams and Cleveland Fed President Mester indicated fiscal measures from the Trump administration could influence their plans. Also note Fed Governor Powell, a permanent voter is giving a rare speech today which could attract some attention.
Crude oil is giving back some of Tuesday's gains with WTI and Brent down 0.6%. Oil could be active today as OPEC reviews compliance with production cuts. Late in the day US API inventories are due followed by DOE inventories plus natural gas tomorrow. Natgas may also remain in the spotlight with a really warm spell in consuming regions cutting into heating demand during peak season.