DAILY MARKET REPORT 16 APRIL
EQUITIES
Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Friday trade. The Nikkei 225 in Japan advanced 0.13% while the Singapore’s Straits Times index rose 0.27%. The Shanghai composite down rose 0.20%, and the India’s S&P BSE Sensex also jumped 0.53%.
Elsewhere in South Korea, the KOSPI declined -0.16%. The Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped -0.05%, and the Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed -0.37%.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed the 34,000 milestones for the first time, rose 0.9%, to 34,035.99; the S&P 500 gained 1.11%, at 4,170.42, and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.31%, at 14,038.76.
OIL
Oil prices were little changed in the morning of Asia trading hours, as the international benchmark Brent crude futures traded at $66.93 per barrel, and U.S. crude futures traded at $63.40 per barrel.
Oil is set for best week since early March on optimism that recovery in demand from the COVID-19 pandemic is improving.
The prices edged up to fresh 4-week highs overnight, as the Brent closed at $66.94 while WTI ended at $63.46 per barrel.
CURRENCIES
In the currency market, lower U.S. yields were a drag on the U.S. dollar. The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield dropped to a 5-week low on Thursday and last stood at 1.574% on Friday, off its 14-month high of 1.776% set at the end of March.
The U.S. dollar was on track to fall to a 4-week low against a basket of currencies. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, sat at 91.76 following its weakening earlier this week from above 92.1.
Turkey's lira wobbled as the country's central bank hinted that it would look to cut interest rates under a new governor, after the last one was sacked after hiking rates last month.
GOLD
Gold slipped slightly as the dollar and yield steadying. The spot gold shed to trade at $1,762.10 an ounce and retreated to $1,761.60 per ounce for gold futures. Previously closed at $1,763.60 and $1,766.80, respectively.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Friday trade as investors reacted to the release of Chinese and U.S. economic data.
China’s GDP surged 18.3% in the first three months of the year from a year ago, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics said Friday, slightly misses expectations for a 19% increase. The retail sales jumped 34.2% in March, beating expectations of 28% growth. Industrial production missed expectations as it rose 14.1% in March.
U.S. retail sales rebounded 9.8%, more than expected in March as Americans received additional pandemic relief checks from the government. Jobless claims also fell more than expected to 576,000 for the week ended April 10, the lowest level since mid-March 2020.
To date, number of confirmed worldwide cases for COVID-19 pandemic has surpassed 138.83 million, recording more than 2.98 million fatality globally.
TECHNICAL OUTLOOK
[USDJPY]
Important Levels to Watch for Today:
- Resistance line of 108.977 and 109.122.
- Support line of 108.509 and 108.364.
Commentary/ Reason:
The dollar traded at 108.872 yen, rose 0.12% to break its 4-day consecutive decline. Though still heading for a 0.9% loss for the week, about the same as the previous week.
Thursday’s U.S. economic data was mostly hawkish for Fed policy and bullish for the dollar. A better-than-expected weekly initial unemployment claims, retail sales, Philadelphia Fed business outlook survey index lifted the dollar sentiment.
Strength in Japan’s Nikkei Stock Index also reduced some safe-haven buying of the yen.
