The Japanese yen weakened slightly during the Asian session on Wednesday, as investors remained cautious while awaiting the Bank of Japan (BoJ) policy update. Market focus now turns to the two-day BoJ meeting next Friday, which is expected to provide clues regarding the interest rate path through 2026. Expectations for a BoJ interest rate hike this week are believed to be a supportive factor for the JPY. Investors anticipate a hawkish BoJ stance could boost the yen or at least prevent further depreciation, although more cautious market sentiment has limited the currency's...
Asian stock markets opened higher on Thursday morning (October 16th), following a positive close on Wall Street despite volatile trading. Stocks in Japan, Australia, and South Korea rose, while index futures pointed to a weaker opening in Hong Kong. In the US, the S&P 500 index rose 1.2%, then fell, and finally closed up 0.4%. Renewed tensions between the United States and China have again affected market sentiment. US President Donald Trump stated that his country is now "locked in a trade war" with China. However, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested a longer pause on import...
Japan's Nikkei stock index rose 0.7% to 47,997.81 at the start of trading on Thursday. This increase followed the gains seen in most US stock markets overnight. Positive sentiment on Wall Street provided additional encouragement for Japanese investors to re-enter the market. According to analysts from Citi Research, there is a strong opportunity for Japanese stocks to continue strengthening over the next 6 to 12 months. One reason is that regardless of the outcome of Japan's political landscape, the new government is likely to implement expansionary, or pro-market, economic policies. Some...
US stocks closed higher on Wednesday, despite ongoing US-China trade tensions and the ongoing government shutdown. The S&P 500 rose 0.4%, boosted by strong earnings reports from Morgan Stanley and Bank of America, which supported the financial sector. Morgan Stanley shares hit a record high, rising 4.7%, while Bank of America gained 4.4% after both banks beat third-quarter earnings expectations thanks to strong deals. The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.7%, supported by a 3% jump in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index following better-than-expected orders and operating income from ASML, reflecting...
US stocks rose on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 up 0.7%, the Nasdaq gaining 0.9%, and the Dow Jones advancing about 220 points, following a volatile session on Tuesday, as investors focus on a new wave of corporate updates. Bank of America climbed 4.5% after reporting higher quarterly profits, while Morgan Stanley shares soared more than 6% to an all-time high of $164 after the lender beat on earnings and revenues. Nvidia went up 1.6% after HSBC upgraded its shares to Buy from Hold. Abbott Laboratories on the other hand, lost 2.2% after a revenue miss. Meanwhile, comments from Federal...
The Nikkei rose at the close on Wednesday (October 15th), led by the property, banking, and textile sectors. Sentiment improved as the market read the Fed's increasingly dovish signals—balance sheet reduction is likely to stop soon—resulting in lower yields and recovering risk appetite. Rotation flowed to domestic issuers benefiting from consumption and stable funding costs; thus, retail and banking were the driving forces. A slightly stronger yen restrained exporters but boosted interest in locally market-oriented stocks. In commodities, oil tended to weaken due to the narrative of a...
The Hang Seng Index rose 1.6% to 25,836.06 at 10:12 a.m. local time on Wednesday, snapping a seven-day losing streak (~-7%). The rise was driven by expectations of a Fed rate cut this month after Jerome Powell signaled a 25-bps rate cut, offsetting concerns about renewed US-China tensions (the "cooking oil" issue). Hang Seng Tech also gained 1.8%, while on the mainland, the CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite each gained 0.4%. Moving stocks: China Life +3.7%, Pop Mart +3.4%, Alibaba +2.4%, Tencent +0.7%. Domestic sentiment was helped by signs of easing Chinese deflation (September PPI -2.3% YoY...
The Nikkei index rose 0.6% to 47,131.16, boosted by expectations of a Fed interest rate cut. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell hinted at the possibility of a 25-bps interest rate cut later this month, which Commerzbank research found was enough to trigger buying. Among the top gainers, Modec jumped 6.1%, Sanrio rose 4.7%, and Aeon also rose 4.7%. The gains were spread across several sectors, indicating broad market sentiment, not limited to specific stocks. Conversely, Asahi Group Holdings fell 1.1% after delaying the release of its third-quarter financial results due to the impact of a...
Asian stocks opened higher, boosting expectations of a Fed interest rate cut, amid renewed concerns about US–China trade tensions. Australia was in the green early in the session, while Japanese and Hong Kong futures signaled gains. Jerome Powell's comments on a weakening job market further strengthened the case for an October rate cut, although Wall Street faltered after President Donald Trump suggested he could halt the "cooking oil" trade with China. In other asset markets, the dollar weakened, oil stabilized near a five-month low, and gold was flat after a three-day rally. Silver...
Gold rises in the early Asian trade. There's a broad commodities uptrend, driven by macro uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and persistent demand for "hard" assets, says Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst...
Oil extended declines after OPEC+ agreed to a bigger-than-expected production increase next month, raising concerns about oversupply just as US tariffs fan fears about the demand outlook.
Brent...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakened against its US counterpart and reversed part of Friday's recovery from the lowest level since July 23 following Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda's remarks....