Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.02%, Shanghai Composite up 0.23%, Hang Seng up 0.55%, ASX up 0.19%
- Commodities : Gold at $1967.85 (-0.07%), Silver at $23.49 (-0.84%), Brent Oil at $85.23 (+0.14%), WTI Oil at $81.69 (+0.17%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.190, UK 10-year yield at 4.5085, Germany 10-year yield at 2.593
News & Data:
- (USD) Unemployment Claims 227K vs 226K expected
- (USD) Final Services PMI 52.3 vs 52.4 expected
- (USD) ISM Services PMI 52.7 vs 53.1 expected
Markets Update:
Asia-Pacific markets experienced a mixed performance on Friday, with rising bond yields continuing to put pressure on equities in the aftermath of the U.S. credit downgrade. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore highlighted that the yield on the U.S. 30-year bond surged by 14 basis points overnight to 4.30%, inching closer to its peak of 4.42% seen in October 2022. The increase in long-end yields was driven by significant bond issuance, robust economic data, and Fitch’s recent downgrade earlier in the week.
In Australia, the Reserve Bank revised down the growth outlook for 2023. However, they provided a glimmer of hope by stating that inflation was “moving in the right direction.” This mixed sentiment resulted in a marginal fall in Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index. Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index saw a slight uptick and ended slightly negative, and the Topix index traded close to the flatline. South Korea’s Kospi index posted a 0.26% increase, and the Kosdaq climbed by 0.19%, indicating some resilience in the region. However, the situation in Hong Kong was more positive, with the Hang Seng index surging 1.8% at the opening.
Conversely, overnight in the United States, all three major indexes closed in negative territory. The S&P 500 fell by 0.25%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.19%, and the Nasdaq Composite inched down by 0.1%. These developments reflected the lingering concerns over the impact of rising bond yields on equity markets, prompting investors in the Asia-Pacific region to closely monitor economic indicators and global developments for further insights into market direction.
Upcoming Events:
- 12:30 PM GMT – CAD Employment Change
- 12:30 PM GMT – CAD Unemployment Rate
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Average Hourly Earnings m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Non-Farm Employment Change
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Unemployment Rate
- 2:00 PM GMT – CAD Ivey PMI
