ICMarket

Friday 24th February 2023 : Asian markets breath a sigh of relief

Global Markets:

  • Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 1.13%, Shanghai Composite down 0.62%, Hang Seng down 1.33%, ASX up 0.30%
  • Commodities : Gold at $1832.50 (+0.31%), Silver at $21.31 (0.00%), Brent Oil at $82.94 (+0.89%), WTI Oil at $76.06 (+0.89%)
  • Rates : US 10-year yield at 3.869, UK 10-year yield at 3.610, Germany 10-year yield at 2.468

News & Data:

  • (EUR) Belgian NBB Business Climate -12.8 vs -12 expected
  • (CAD) NHPI m/m -0.20% vs 0.10% expected
  • (EUR) German 10-y Bond Auction 2.56|2.0 vs 2.27|1.5 previous
  • (EUR) German ifo Business Climate 91.1 vs 91.1 expected
  • (CHF) Credit Suisse Economic Expectations -12.3 vs -40 previous
  • (EUR) German Final CPI m/m 1.00% vs 1.00% expected

Markets Update:

Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Friday, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as the markets remain concerned over the outlook for interest rates after the US Fed’s minutes offered few surprises but reiterated that the central bank will continue to raise interest rates in its battle against inflation. 

The Australian stock market is notably higher on Friday, recouping some of the losses in the previous three sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 moving above the 7,300 level, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with gains in technology, energy and financial stocks. The Japanese stock market is significantly higher on Friday, recouping the losses in the previous two sessions, even as the domestic inflation hit the highest in over four-decades. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slumped 1.4%, driven by an over 4% loss in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. 

The dollar index, which measures the safe-haven dollar against six peers, was hovering at 104.63, not too far from a seven-week high of 104.78. After trending lower in recent sessions, the price of crude oil showed a strong move back to the upside on Thursday, despite a bigger than expected increase in U.S. crude oil inventories.

Upcoming Events:

  • 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Core PCE Price Index m/m
  • 03:00 PM GMT – (USD) New Home Sales
  • 03:00 PM GMT – (USD) Revised UoM Consumer Sentiment
  • Day 3 – (All) G20 Meetings