Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.75%, Shanghai Composite down 0.45%, Hang Seng down 0.43% ASX up 0.31%
- Commodities : Gold at $2500.35 (0.30%), Silver at $27.7 (-0.04%), Brent Oil at $81.22 (0.66%), WTI Oil at $78.9 (0.74%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 3.853, UK 10-year yield at 3.891, Germany 10-year yield at 2.183
News & Data:
- (USD) Core PPI m/m 0.0% vs 0.2% expected
- (USD) PPI m/m 0.1% vs 0.2% expected
Markets Update:
Asia-Pacific markets showed mixed performance on Wednesday. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand unexpectedly cut its benchmark lending rate to 5.25%, despite economists predicting it would remain at 5.5%. In Japan, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced he would step down in September and would not seek reelection as the Liberal Democratic Party leader, according to Reuters.
In South Korea, the unemployment rate fell to 2.5% in July, its lowest since October 2023. However, business sentiment in Japan’s manufacturing sector slightly declined in August, as reflected in the Reuters Tankan survey. The sentiment index for manufacturers dropped to +10, down from +11 in July, while the non-manufacturers index also decreased.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.7% following Kishida’s announcement, and the Topix gained 0.87%. South Korea’s Kospi increased by 0.71%, with the small-cap Kosdaq up 1.62%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw a more modest rise of 0.65%. Meanwhile, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission sued the ASX for making misleading statements regarding its CHESS project, which was not progressing as claimed.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dipped by 0.4%, and mainland China’s CSI 300 fell by 0.61%. In the U.S., stocks rallied as the producer price index rose by just 0.1% in July, below expectations. The Dow Jones climbed 1.04%, the Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.43%, and the S&P 500 gained 1.68%, approaching record levels from July. Investors now await the July consumer price index figures due Wednesday.
Upcoming Events:
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Core CPI m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD CPI m/m
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD CPI y/y
