- Asian equities print mild gains amid US dollar weakness, no obstacles for easy money.
- Vaccine jitters, Sino-American tension tame the bulls ahead of Fed’s Powell.
- Reflation fears stay on the table but Treasury yields defy the mood.
- RBNZ offered no policy change, Aussie Consumer Confidence rallied.
Asian shares remain mildly bid while heading into Wednesday’s European session. While a lack of major data/events allowed trading sentiment to carry the previous day’s cautious sentiment, off in India and cautious mood ahead of a speech from Fed Chair Jerome Powell cap market moves off-late.
Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 both refreshed record top the previous day following the upbeat prints US Consumer Price Index (CPI). The moves directed MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific outside Japan to print 0.50% intraday gains by the press time. However, Japan’s Nikkei 225 prints mild losses amid downbeat Machinery Orders and chatters over a halt in Johnson & Johnson covid vaccine usage amid blood clotting issues.
Elsewhere easing bond yields and no challenges to the easy money policies also favored bulls in Asia. That said, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) matches wide market expectations of no policy change whereas Australia’s Westpac Consumer Confidence for April marked strong prints. As a result, Australia’s ASX 200 and NZX 50 rise around half a percent by the press time.
In doing so, markets in Australia and New Zealand ignore mixed signals concerning the US and China’s future relationship. Although Chinese Premier Li Keqiang pushes for Sino-American talks, rumors over Beijing’s ‘destructive missiles & lasers’ to ‘blind US spacecraft sensors,’ quoted by The Sun, seem to keep the negotiators off the table.
Furthermore, stocks in China are mildly bid whereas South Korea’s KOSPI cheers soft Unemployment Rate and upbeat Export Price Growth for March. Further, Indonesia’s IDX Composite rise over 1.0% amid hopes of vaccination and China’s economic recovery.
S&P 500 Futures wobble near the record top whereas the US 10-year Treasury yield remains compressed around 1.62% after declining 5.6 basis points (bps) the previous day.
Read: S&P 500 Futures wobble around record top as US Treasury yields stay depressed
Looking forward, calmer markets will look towards Fed’s Powell for fresh impulse amid the latest upbeat US data.
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