Manic Monday as Trump turns up the heat on....>

FOREX: Manic Monday as Trump turns up the heat on China trade spat

-Trump didn't hold back over the weekend, threatening to hike tariffs on various

Chinese imports to 25% from their current level of 10%, elevating the pressure

on US-China trade teams to come to a swift conclusion. The news sent Chinese

equities spiralling, with the CSI 300 dropping near 6% and the Shanghai Comp

down close to 3%. This fed through to European stock markets and has helped

boost the USD and JPY at the expense of CNY, AUD and NOK.

-Following Friday's firm rally, GBP has consolidated slightly, but holds the

bulk of last week's gains with weekend reports suggesting Theresa May is

considering making material concessions to secure a Brexit deal by as soon as

the end of this week. Nonetheless, UK assets remain quiet with markets closed

for a Bank Holiday.

-Commodity and particularly oil-tied FX sits weaker as crude oil drops to one

month lows on the China news. CAD and NOK have fallen in sympathy, occupying the

bottom spots on the G10 table.

-Attention turns to speeches due from Fed's Harker, ECB's Praet and BoC's Poloz.