At last – a rally on stockmarkets around the world, a weakening for the US dollar, a sharp fall in oil prices into the bargain, and a rise in spot iron ore prices.

Analysts are still trying to decipher what Chinese Premier, Li Keqiang meant on Sunday when he told a Beijing press conference that the Chinese economy will struggle to make its reduced growth target of 7% in 2015.

The charging US dollar dominated financial markets last week and with the US Federal Reserve meeting this week, the greenback will again be the major factor for investors to contend with.

Investors with hopes of the global oil market steadying and prices stabilising around the $US50 to $US60 a barrel level, received a rude reminder to the contrary last week.

And Comex gold futures held above $1,150 an ounce on Friday in New York as the US dollar eased during trading after the rush higher from Monday to Thursday.

The two-day US Federal Reserve meeting will set the agenda for markets around the world in the coming week.

Suddenly, a turnaround in market sentiment overnight, illustrating the increased volatility gripping financial markets.

Well, there was nothing in the February jobs report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to change anyone’s current opinion of the economy.

Further confirmation yesterday that the slowdown in the pace of economic activity in China has continued into 2015 and possibly quickened.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has left its key interest rate on steady once again at 3.5%, despite once again warning about the high value of the Kiwi dollar.

The strengthening US dollar carved a swathe through global markets overnight, sending Wall Street to its biggest one day loss in five months, knocking commodities lower, led by gold and oil, and setting up another big loss for the Australian stockmarket today.

Business confidence has slipped to the lowest level since before the September 2013 Federal election.

The Lunar New Year has again disrupted an important Chinese economic statistic after consumer price inflation jumped to an annual rate of 1.4% from 0.8% in January, thanks to price rises, especially for food because of the week-long break.

Yet another fall in iron ore prices overnight Monday will add pressure to the fragile state of sentiment in the stockmarket today.

Nearly two years after starting what was then a $US1.4 trillion bout of quantitative easing to try and push the Japanese economy out of a deflationary rut and get growth tracking higher, there are few signs of any significant impact from what was called the Bank of Japan’s ‘bazooka’.

Not content with dealing with a slide triggered by the very strong US jobs report for February, local investors will have to take account of a new record low for iron ore on Friday night when trading resumes on the ASX this morning.

Another set of confusing trade data from China has again raised questions about the performance of the country’s economy.

Australian jobs figures on Thursday and the important housing finance data out Wednesday are the most important data releases here this week. Elsewhere, Chinese economic and inflation data for February will be released, while in the US and Europe it will be a much quieter week.

Now for a big rumble in markets across Asia today, starting with the US after Wall Street staged its now usual sell-off ahead of a looming change of Fed monetary policy.

Watch iron ore stocks today on the ASX, they will come under more pressure after the world spot price dipped under $US60 a tonne in a brutal 4.5% slide.

As was widely forecast, Premier Li Keqiang yesterday lowered China’s 2015 growth target to “around 7%”, down on the 7.4% growth rate reported for 2014 which was the lowest in 24 years.

Confirmation yesterday that the economy continues to stagger along in low gear, not going anywhere, except sliding lower as 2015 goes on.

Australian investors with a taste for rural investments will have a chance to get their hands on a new play in rice in coming months with the decision by the rice export monopoly SunRice to list on the ASX in a limited fashion.

Ahead of the Reserve bank decision yesterday (non-decision really), we got the final data release ahead of today’s 4th quarter national accounts and GDP figures, and more early figures for January on how the economy started 2015.

No rate rise from the Reserve Bank yesterday, upsetting all those pundits who were forecasting a second reduction to go with the surprise chop in February.

The stockmarket boom of the first two months of the year is set to continue into the second trading day of March after another surge offshore, especially in the US, on top of yesterday’s 0.6% jump to new seven year highs.

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