EQUITIES
Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Tuesday trade. Mainland Chinese stocks were higher, with the Shanghai composite up about 0.30% while the Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index advanced 1.06%. The Nikkei 225 in Japan gained 0.22% while in South Korea, the KOSPI rose 0.09%.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia lagged the broader region as it fell about 0.65%. The S&P BSE Sensex in India and the Singapore’s Straits Times index traded around the flatline.
Overnight on Wall Street, indexes closed out Monday's session near the unchanged mark. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.04%, to 36,087.45, the S&P 500 lost 0.05 point to 4,682.80 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.04%, to 15,853.85.
OIL
Oil prices advanced on Tuesday as market await the International Energy Agency to release its monthly oil market report later today. The OPEC last week revised its forecast for the growth in global oil demand this year down somewhat to 5.65 million bpd. The IEA is likely to paint a similar picture.
The Brent now traded at $82.87 per barrel, and U.S. crude futures traded at $81.54 per barrel.
Overnight, the Brent ends at $82.05 a barrel, and the WTI settled at $80.88 per barrel.
CURRENCIES
Benchmark U.S. Treasury yields inched lower on Tuesday and were last at 1.599% though still up sharply since a one-month low of 1.42% hit one week ago, as bond market is anticipating that the rate hike cycle could commence in 2022.
The dollar index eased from the 16-month high touched on Monday, and last stood at 95.420 on Tuesday.
The Reserve Bank of Australia released minutes from its November monetary policy meeting earlier today, which showed the RBA’s governor pushed back against calls for a rate hike next year. RBA Governor Philip Lowe, responding to expectations that most advanced economy central banks will raise interest rates by the end of 2022. Investors have been watching for clues on when major central banks could raise policy interest rates amid inflation concerns.
GOLD
Gold was steady on Tuesday, with spot gold rose 0.28% to $1,867.40 an ounce, just off Monday's five month high of $1870. The U.S. gold futures little changed at $1,868.10.
Silver advanced 0.54% to $25.24, and platinum added 0.23% to and $1,099.40 per ounce, while palladium shed 0.30% to $2,049.50.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Asian shares were mostly higher on Tuesday, as markets responding to China's better than expected economic data, released Monday, with retail sales and industrial output both handily beating forecasts.
Relief in China's property sector also supported sentiment while investors also kept a close eye on a key meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Both leaders opened their closely-watched talks warmly, stressing their responsibility to the rest of the world to avoid conflict.
Investors also searched for a clearer economic picture, closely watching fresh data on U.S. retail sales for October due later today to show the impact of inflation on consumer spending, after a report out Friday showed consumer sentiment hitting its lowest point in a decade, due in part to inflation.
Focus this week also will be on earnings reports from several major retailers including from Walmart and Home Depot today; Target, Lowe's, and TJX Companies on Wednesday; JD.com, Alibaba, Macy's, and Kohl's on Thursday; and Foot Locker on Friday.
