Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.38%, Shanghai Composite up 0.46%, Hang Seng up 0.57%, ASX up 0.09%
- Commodities : Gold at $1321.55 (+0.01%), Silver at $15.42 (-0.05%), Brent Oil at $67.59 (+0.24%), WTI Oil at $60.03 (+0.15%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.418, UK 10-year yield at 1.008, Germany 10-year yield at -0.023
News & Data:
- (NZD) Official Cash Rate 1.75% vs 1.75% expected
- (USD) CB Consumer Confidence 124.1 vs 132.1 expected
- (USD) Building Permits 1.30M vs 1.32M expected
- Italian embrace of China’s new Silk Road meets abrasive transatlantic double standards
- Reserve Bank of New Zealand keeps the OCR at 1.75%, but acknowledges the weaker global and domestic economy and flags its next move will more likely be a cut
Markets Update:
Asian stock markets are mixed on Wednesday despite the positive cues overnight from Wall Street as lingering worries about global economic growth weighed on investment sentiment. Overnight, long-term U.S. government bond yields pulled back off their best levels following the release of some disappointing U.S. economic data.
The mainland Chinese markets, however, bucked the overall trend as they gained by the morning session’s end. The Shanghai composite added 0.5 percent and the Shenzhen component rose about 0.4 percent. The Nikkei 225 in Japan declined 0.4 percent in afternoon trade, as shares of automaker Nissan dropped around 4 percent.
In South Korea, the Kospi was flat as industry heavyweight Samsung Electronics recover from an earlier slip to rise more than 0.5 percent after announcing on Tuesday that its first quarter earnings would likely fall short of expectations.
The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield inched to as high as 2.432 percent from Monday’s 15-month low of 2.377 percent, though the yield curve remained inverted, with three-month bills yielding 2.461 percent, more than 10-year bonds. The New Zealand dollar took a tumble after the country’s central bank blindsided markets by saying the next move in interest rates would likely be down, abandoning its long-standing neutral stance. The Australian dollar was dragged down in its wake, falling 0.4 percent to $0.7102, though the Aussie did make hefty gains on its kiwi counterpart.
Oil prices remained supported by supply curbs by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus allies and as Venezuela’s main oil export port and four crude upgraders have been unable to resume operations following a massive power blackout.
Upcoming Events:
- 09:00 AM GMT – (EUR) ECB President Draghi Speaks
- 01:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Trade Balance
- 10:30 PM GMT – (USD) FOMC Member George Speaks
- &more…
