US Government was closed over the weekend - Westpac

Analysts at Westpac explained that the US Government was closed over the weekend after the Senate failed to reach the votes required on Friday night.

Key Quotes:

"Despite this, US equities closed at fresh records and the US dollar was stable. US 10yr bonds hit 2.66, a high back to July 2014.

US shutdown talks continue into early Monday whilst Germany’s SDP voted in favour of a grand coalition with Merkel’s CDU/CSU over the weekend. Yields moved higher into the US close as the shutdown deadlock continued, even though USD managed to consolidate off its lows and stocks managed to post yet further record gains.

US 10yr yields pushed through the psychologically important post-election highs of 2.65%, touching 2.66% into the NY close. The U. Michigan Survey posted a dip in sentiment (94.4 vs exp 97.0) though it remains relatively firm. Of more note was a lift in inflation expectations (1yr 2.8% vs 2.7% in Dec). The uptick in surveyed inflation expectations was one factor that pushed US yields higher Friday."