ICMarket

Tuesday 16th July 2024: Asian Markets Mixed After Powell’s Dovish Remarks

Global Markets:

  •  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.22%, Shanghai Composite down 0.09%, Hang Seng down 1.58% ASX down 0.19%
  • Commodities : Gold at $2433.5 (0.37%), Silver at $31.02 (0.34%), Brent Oil at $84.33 (-0.47%), WTI Oil at $80.31 (-0.47%)
  • Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.199, UK 10-year yield at 4.151, Germany 10-year yield at 2.466

News & Data:

  • (CAD) Manufacturing Sales m/m 0.4% vs 0.3% expected
  • (CAD) Wholesale Sales m/m  -0.8% vs 2.0% expected
  • (USD) Empire State Manufacturing Index  -6.6 vs -5.5 expected

Markets Update:

Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Tuesday following dovish remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, which boosted Wall Street overnight. Powell indicated that the central bank will not wait for inflation to reach 2% before cutting interest rates, noting the delayed effects of the Fed’s policies. His comments, coupled with expectations of Republican gains after the failed assassination attempt on presidential candidate Donald Trump, propelled the Dow Jones Industrial Average to new highs.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.57%, led by declines in consumer stocks, while mainland China’s CSI 300 rose 0.21%. Ping An Insurance shares fell over 5% after the company announced the cancellation of $102.6 million A shares. India’s Nifty 50 hit an all-time high, gaining 0.23% ahead of the upcoming union budget presentation. Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Topix increased by 0.24% and 0.48% respectively, with TDK Corporation shares surging over 4%.

South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.14%, while the Kosdaq dropped 1.33%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw a slight decline, pulling back from its record closing high on Monday. Following China’s weaker-than-expected GDP growth, Goldman Sachs lowered its full-year GDP forecast to 4.9% from 5%, and JPMorgan revised its prediction to 4.7% from 5.2%, highlighting the need for increased government policy support.

Singapore state investor Temasek announced plans to invest up to $10 billion in India’s financial services and healthcare sectors over the next three years. Temasek, with 19% of its investments in China, remains cautious due to trade tensions. Overnight in the U.S., the Dow rose 0.53% to a record close of 40,211.72, the S&P 500 increased by 0.28% to 5,631.22, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.4% to finish at 18,472.57.

Upcoming Events: 

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