ICMarket

Tuesday 8th Aug 2023: Asia-Pacific Markets React to Unexpected Dip in China’s Trade Performance



Global Markets:

  •  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.27%, Shanghai Composite down 0.25%, Hang Seng down 1.80%, ASX up 0.03%
  • Commodities : Gold at $1967.85 (-0.12%), Silver at $23.21 (-0.07%), Brent Oil at $84.86 (-0.56%), WTI Oil at $81.49 (-0.54%)
  • Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.014, UK 10-year yield at 4.415, Germany 10-year yield at 2.480

News & Data:

  • (USD) Consumer Credit m/m 17.8B vs 13.8B expected
  • (GBP) BRC Retail Sales Monitor y/y 1.8% vs 3.0% expected
  • (JPY) Average Cash Earnings y/y 2.3% vs 3.0% expected
  • (JPY) House Spending y/y -4.2% vs -3.9% expected

Markets Update:

On Tuesday, the Asia-Pacific markets displayed a mixture of outcomes due to China’s trade figures for July falling short of expectations. China experienced a 14.5% year-on-year decline in its exports, accompanied by a 12.4% drop in imports. Economists surveyed by Reuters had predicted a 12.5% decrease in exports and a 5% reduction in imports. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index slipped by 1.80%, while both the Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component indexes were trading near the neutral point.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose by 0.27%, extending its winning streak to three days and closing at 32,377.29. Meanwhile, the Topix index gained 0.34% and concluded at 2,291.73. This came as Japan’s household spending remained in negative territory for the fourth consecutive month. In June, household spending dropped by 4.2% year on year, compared to a 4% decline in May, as per official data.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index recorded a marginal climb, ending at 7,311.1. On the other hand, South Korea’s Kospi index dipped by 0.26%, marking its fifth consecutive day of losses. The Kosdaq index also slipped by 0.65% to 892.34.

In the previous U.S. trading session, all three major indexes saw gains as investors continued to digest earnings results that surpassed expectations. About 85% of S&P 500 stocks had reported their quarterly results, with nearly 80% of them surpassing Wall Street’s predictions, as per FactSet. The Dow, consisting of 30 stocks, surged by almost 1.2%, marking its best performance since June 15. Concurrently, the Nasdaq Composite increased by 0.6%, and the S&P 500 closed with a 0.9% gain. Both the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 broke their four-day streak of losses.

Upcoming Events: 

  • 12:30 PM GMT – CAD Trade Balance
  • 12:30 PM GMT – USD Trade Balance
  • 2:00 PM GMT – USD Final Wholesale Inventories m/m