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Asia Stocks Mixed as Oil Shock Mulled; Bonds Gain: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks traded mixed Tuesday as investors assessed heightened geopolitical risks in the aftermath of the strike on Saudi Arabia’s crude production. Treasuries extended gains.Japan’s Topix index rose, while shares fell in Shanghai and Hong Kong and were little changed in Seoul and Sydney. S&P 500 futures fluctuated after U.S. stocks slipped Monday. European futures dipped. The dollar held an advance and oil gave back some of Monday’s surge. Saudi Aramco now faces weeks or months before the majority of output is restored at the giant Abqaiq processing plant, adding a fresh headwind for the global economy.The developments in the Middle East are testing sentiment after a bullish start to the month for global equities and other riskier assets. President Donald Trump promised to help allies following the infrastructure attack after stating over the weekend that the U.S. is “locked and loaded.” Saudi Arabia said preliminary findings show Iranian weapons were used in the attack on one of its key oil installations, but stopped short of directly blaming the Islamic Republic for the strikes.“The key thing to think about is do we have an oil shock or a short-term disruption?” said Virginie Maisonneuve, chief investment officer at Eastspring Investments, in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “You’re seeing this wait-and-see attitude, and that’s why the markets are quite nervous.”The events have also overshadowed concerns about the trade war. American and Chinese senior trade negotiators are expected to resume negotiations in the next week and a half. Meanwhile, Trump said the U.S. and Japan have reached an initial trade accord over tariffs.Elsewhere, the pound held on to a retreat after no signs of progress in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s first face-to-face meeting on Brexit with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.These are some key events to keep an eye on this week:The Federal Reserve is widely expected to lower U.S. interest rates in response to slowing global economic growth and muted inflation. Chairman Jerome Powell will hold a post-decision press conference Wednesday.The Bank of Japan monetary policy decision is on Thursday, followed by a briefing from Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.Bank Indonesia and Bank of England also decide policy on Thursday.Australia jobs figures are out Thursday.Friday is quadruple witching day for U.S. markets. When the quarterly expiration of futures and options on indexes and stocks occurs on the same day, surging volatility and trading can follow.Here are the main moves in markets:StocksJapan’s Topix index rose 0.2% at the break in Tokyo.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index was flat.Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.9%.Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.9%.Futures on the S&P 500 were little changed. The S&P 500 Index fell 0.3%.Euro Stoxx 50 contracts fell 0.1%.CurrenciesThe yen was steady at 108.16 per dollar.The offshore yuan fell 0.2% to 7.0791 per dollar.Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged up less than 0.1%.The euro was at $1.1012, up 0.1%.The British pound fell 0.1% to $1.2413 after sinking 0.6% previous session.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries fell about three basis points to 1.82%.Australia’s 10-year bond yield fell about six basis points to 1.13%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude slipped 1.6% to $61.88 a barrel.Gold was little changed at $1,498.95 an ounce.\--With assistance from Gregor Stuart Hunter.To contact the reporter on this story: Andreea Papuc in Sydney at apapuc1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.net, Cormac MullenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/asia-stocks-set-muted-open-225844586.html?.tsrc=rss
(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks traded mixed Tuesday as investors assessed heightened geopolitical risks in the aftermath of the strike on Saudi Arabia’s crude production. Treasuries extended gains.Japan’s Topix index rose, while shares fell in Shanghai and Hong Kong and were little changed in Seoul and Sydney. S&P 500 futures fluctuated after U.S. stocks slipped Monday. European futures dipped. The dollar held an advance and oil gave back some of Monday’s surge. Saudi Aramco now faces weeks or months before the majority of output is restored at the giant Abqaiq processing plant, adding a fresh headwind for the global economy.The developments in the Middle East are testing sentiment after a bullish start to the month for global equities and other riskier assets. President Donald Trump promised to help allies following the infrastructure attack after stating over the weekend that the U.S. is “locked and loaded.” Saudi Arabia said preliminary findings show Iranian weapons were used in the attack on one of its key oil installations, but stopped short of directly blaming the Islamic Republic for the strikes.“The key thing to think about is do we have an oil shock or a short-term disruption?” said Virginie Maisonneuve, chief investment officer at Eastspring Investments, in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “You’re seeing this wait-and-see attitude, and that’s why the markets are quite nervous.”The events have also overshadowed concerns about the trade war. American and Chinese senior trade negotiators are expected to resume negotiations in the next week and a half. Meanwhile, Trump said the U.S. and Japan have reached an initial trade accord over tariffs.Elsewhere, the pound held on to a retreat after no signs of progress in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s first face-to-face meeting on Brexit with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.These are some key events to keep an eye on this week:The Federal Reserve is widely expected to lower U.S. interest rates in response to slowing global economic growth and muted inflation. Chairman Jerome Powell will hold a post-decision press conference Wednesday.The Bank of Japan monetary policy decision is on Thursday, followed by a briefing from Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.Bank Indonesia and Bank of England also decide policy on Thursday.Australia jobs figures are out Thursday.Friday is quadruple witching day for U.S. markets. When the quarterly expiration of futures and options on indexes and stocks occurs on the same day, surging volatility and trading can follow.Here are the main moves in markets:StocksJapan’s Topix index rose 0.2% at the break in Tokyo.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index was flat.Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.9%.Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.9%.Futures on the S&P 500 were little changed. The S&P 500 Index fell 0.3%.Euro Stoxx 50 contracts fell 0.1%.CurrenciesThe yen was steady at 108.16 per dollar.The offshore yuan fell 0.2% to 7.0791 per dollar.Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged up less than 0.1%.The euro was at $1.1012, up 0.1%.The British pound fell 0.1% to $1.2413 after sinking 0.6% previous session.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries fell about three basis points to 1.82%.Australia’s 10-year bond yield fell about six basis points to 1.13%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude slipped 1.6% to $61.88 a barrel.Gold was little changed at $1,498.95 an ounce.\--With assistance from Gregor Stuart Hunter.To contact the reporter on this story: Andreea Papuc in Sydney at apapuc1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.net, Cormac MullenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/asia-stocks-set-muted-open-225844586.html?.tsrc=rss
