EQUITIES
Shares in Asia-Pacific were lower on Tuesday trade. Mainland Chinese stocks slipped, with the Shanghai composite declining 0.51% while over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index down 0.35%.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 0.21%, while the Singapore’s FTSE Straits Times Index slipped 0.28%, and the India’s S&P BSE Sensex index traded 0.17%. lower. The South Korea’s KOSPI traded just below the flatline.
Elsewhere, the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia bucked the overall trend to edge 0.05% higher.
Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 struggled to reach a record high, slipping roughly 0.1% on the day to 4,226.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 126.15 points to 34,360.24 while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.49% to 13,881.72.
OIL
Oil prices ran into profit-taking on Tuesday after Brent topped $72 a barrel for the first time since 2019 last week and the U.S. oil hit $70 a barrel for the first time since October 2018.
The crude oil lost ground as concerns about the fragile state of the global recovery in demand for crude and fuels were heightened by data showing China's oil imports fell in May.
The Brent now traded at $70.80 per barrel, and U.S. crude futures traded at $68.64 per barrel.
Overnight, the Brent closed at $71.49 while WTI ended at $69.28 per barrel.
CURRENCIES
The dollar and 10-year U.S. Treasury yields slipped. Traders are awaiting the U.S. inflation report this week to gauge price pressures amid expectations that the Fed in the weeks ahead will begin discussions on tapering its asset purchases.
The dollar's index against a basket of six major currencies stood at 90.071, while the benchmark 10-year yield was pinned near more than 1-week low, at 1.564.
Cryptocurrencies little moved, as Bitcoin traded flat at $32,898, while ether stood at $2,502.
GOLD
The spot gold declined to trade at $1,895.30 an ounce and slipped to $1,898.30 per ounce for gold futures. Previously closed at $1,899.70 and $1,898.80, respectively.
Silver slipped 0.37% to $27.915 per ounce, palladium gained 0.15% to $2,842.00, while platinum edged 0.34% lower to $1,170.80.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Asian stocks traded cautiously on Tuesday, as investors stay sidelines while await more clues on the China and U.S. inflation data, ECB’s interest rate decision, and key central bank meetings and data points this week.
Japan's GDP shrank at a slower-than-initially reported pace in the Q1. The economy declined an annualised 3.9% in January-March, not as bad as the preliminary reading of an annualised 5.1% contraction.
Regulator signals concern as shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc and other “meme stocks” jumped, extending a rally in social-media favourites into a third week as message boards hummed with talk of squeezing Wall Street short-sellers.
Some of the main moves in markets today including the U.S. trade balance & JOLTs job opening, and Europe’s economic sentiment index, employment data & GDP growth rate.
TECHNICAL OUTLOOK
[USDJPY]
Important Levels to Watch for Today:
- Resistance line of 109.950 and 109.832.
- Support line of 109.061 and 108.878.
Commentary/ Reason:
The dollar bounced from yesterday’s 1-week low of 109.191 to 109.404 yen on Tuesday, losing steam after having hit a two-month high of 110.325 late last week.
Japanese yen earlier gains were snapped as investors were cautious ahead of the U.S. CPI report this week and the U.S. central bank's meeting next week.
The yen advanced at the opening but quickly changed course to accelerate its slide during Asian trading hours amid easing demand for the Asia currency. The poor performance of Nikkei equities Tuesday put pressure on the pair in the day.
