Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.29%, Shanghai Composite up 1.36%, Hang Seng up 3.08% ASX up 0.43%
- Commodities : Gold at $2629.35 (0.14%), Silver at $30.70 (0.04%), Brent Oil at $76.91 (0.66%), WTI Oil at $73.56 (0.52%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.078, UK 10-year yield at 4.182, Germany 10-year yield at 2.2745
News & Data:
- (USD) Crude Oil Inventories 5.8M vs 2.0M expected
Markets Update:
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher on Thursday, buoyed by Wall Street gains that saw the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average hit new records as investors brushed aside geopolitical concerns.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.43% to 8,223 points, while South Korea’s Kospi added 0.34% to close at 2,603.25. Japan’s Nikkei 225 increased 0.26% to 39,380.89, and the Topix gained 0.2% to 2,712.67. Traders were digesting Japan’s September producer price data, which showed a 2.8% increase year-on-year, exceeding expectations of 2.3%.
Chinese stocks rebounded, with the CSI 300 rising nearly 3% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index climbing over 4%. The rebound followed a temporary halt in a rally driven by government stimulus measures. China’s central bank began accepting applications for a new liquidity tool worth 500 billion yuan ($70.7 billion) to ease capital access for the stock market.
Japan’s Seven & i Holdings saw a modest 0.6% rise ahead of its earnings report, with attention on restructuring plans following a revised buyout offer from Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.
In the U.S., the S&P 500 surged 0.71% to close at 5,792.04, while the Dow Jones gained 431.63 points (1.03%) to end at 42,512. The Nasdaq Composite also rose 0.6% to 18,291.62. Wall Street’s gains were supported by the Federal Reserve’s September meeting minutes and despite ongoing Middle East tensions. Investors await U.S. consumer price data, with core inflation expected to hold steady at 3.2%.
Upcoming Events:
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Core Retail Sales m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Core PPI m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD PPI m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Unemployment Claims
