Asian shares rise on dovish Fed chair, oil up as hurricane batters Louisiana

HONG KONG - Asian shares started the week with gains and the dollar was not far off two-week lows after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell struck a more dovish tone than some investors expected in long-awaited speech on Friday.

Oil prices rose, meanwhile, after energy firms suspended production as Hurricane Ida slammed into the U.S.' southern coast.

Japan's Nikkei rose 0.9 percent soon after the bell, and MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.32 percent in early trading before Chinese markets had opened.

Australia climbed 0.39 percent and Korea's Kopsi gained 0.54 percent.

U.S. stock futures, the S&P 500 e-minis, were barely moved, up 0.04 percent.

Investors had been waiting to see whether Powell, who was speaking at a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, would give a clear indication of his views on timing of the central bank's tapering of asset purchases or hiking interest rates to start removing monetary stimulus.

However, in his prepared remarks, he offered no indication on cutting asset purchases beyond saying it could be "this year", causing the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to close last week at new record highs.

The next big event on traders' calendars is U.S. nonfarm payroll figures for August due to be published Friday, as Powell has suggested an improvement in the labor market is one major remaining prerequisite for action.

"A strong payrolls print could instigate a debate for a September tapering start," Rodrigo Catril, senior FX strategist at NAB, said in a note.

The absence of a timetable for tapering caused U.S. benchmark Treasuries and the dollar to slip, and both trends continued on Monday morning in Asia.

The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes was 1.3054 percent compared with its U.S. close of 1.312 percent, and the dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies was around a two week low.

Investors in China, in contrast, are watching data this week to see whether they will indicate policymakers are more likely step up easing measures.

Purchasing manager surveys for manufacturing and services are both due this week, with traders waiting to see whether a trend towards slowing growth will continue, a shift that has not been helped by recent localized movement restrictions to cope with an increase in cases of the Delta variant of the new coronavirus.

"We expect both the manufacturing and services PMIs to moderate in August, given the widespread Delta variant and strict lockdown," said Barclays analysts in a note.

"With slowing growth momentum and dovish signals from the (People's Bank of China) meeting this week, we expect more easing, but still at a measured pace"

Oil was also in focus after energy firms suspended 1.74 million barrels per day of oil production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico as Hurricane Ida slammed into the Louisiana coast as a Category 4 storm.

U.S. crude rose 0.86 percent to $69.34 a barrel. Brent crude rose 1.25 percent to $73.38 per barrel.

Gold was slightly higher, with the spot price gold was traded at $1,817.7863 per ounce, up 0.07 percent.

(Editing by Lincoln Feast.)

-reuters

Stocks sag on concerns about Covid, global growth

NEW YORK -- Global stocks mostly fell Friday as worries about rising Covid-19 cases and their effect on global growth weighed on sentiment, pushing Wall Street into the red for the week.

After data showed an unexpected rise in US retail sales, Wall Street pushed higher at the open. But markets soon tumbled into the red and losses grew as the day progressed.

Analysts pointed to profit taking as a factor in Friday's session and throughout the week following records earlier in the month. 

Investors are "continuing to trim winning positions" as they await more clarity on the course of the economy, said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

The broad-based S&P 500 ended down 0.8 percent at 4,327.16, taking its weekly losses to around one percent.

The highly-contagious Delta variant has led to surging infection rates in many parts of the world, leading authorities to reimpose certain restrictions.

"Covid-19 concerns still linger and the economic outlook is not as bright as it was just a few weeks ago," said market analyst Edward Moya at trading platform Oanda.

Major European bourses retreated, along with Tokyo, which closed one percent lower as investors worried over rising Covid-19 infections and the Bank of Japan trimmed its economic growth forecast for the current fiscal year.

Hong Kong's leading index was flat as late profit-taking wiped out earlier gains ahead of a US warning about doing business in the territory.

In a long-awaited advisory that has already been denounced by China, the United States warned its business community of "growing risks" of operating in Hong Kong due to China's clampdown.

The advisory acknowledged that Hong Kong, a former British colony handed back to China in 1997, "retains many economic distinctions" from the mainland, including stronger protections of intellectual property.

But Washington pointed to a declining climate under a national security law enacted last year, including the arrest of one US citizen -- John Clancey, a prominent human rights lawyer.

Shanghai closed 0.7 percent lower while Seoul, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok also retreated. Wellington was flat while Sydney, Singapore, and Jakarta ticked higher.

- Key figures around 2030 GMT -

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.9 percent at 34,687.85 (close)

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.8 percent at 4,327.16 (close)

New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.8 percent at 14,427.24 (close)

London - FTSE 100: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 7,008.09 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.6 percent at 15,540.31 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.5 percent at 6,460.08 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.5 percent at 4,035.77 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.0 percent at 28,003.08 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 28,004.68 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,539.30 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1809 from $1.1812 at 2100 GMT Thursday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3765 from $1.3829

Euro/pound: UP at 85.77 from 85.42 pence

Dollar/yen: UP at 110.04 from 109.83 yen

Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.2 percent at $73.59 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $71.81 per barrel

Agence France-Presse

Most Asian markets up but trade fears stalk investors

HONG KONG — Asian markets mostly rose Wednesday, building on a positive start to the week as investors are cheered by healthy earnings but uncertainty caused by the US-China trade row is keeping optimism in check.

Wall Street provided another strong lead with the Nasdaq approaching a record high, while energy firms in Asia pressed on with their rally following more gains in oil prices.

Hong Kong was 0.1 percent higher in early trade while Tokyo ended the morning session 0.4 percent up and Sydney edged 0.3 percent ahead. Seoul, Wellington and Taipei all posted gains but Shanghai dipped 0.6 percent.

While the gains are welcome, traders remain on edge for any new developments in the trade saga between the world's top two economies.

On Tuesday the US said Donald Trump's 25 percent tariffs on a further $16 billion of Chinese goods will kick in on August 23. That is on top of the measures imposed on $34 billion of imports last month.

The move had been widely expected but with China lining up retaliatory measures it reinforced worries that the two sides are heading for an all-out trade war that could hammer the global economy. The White House has also lined up another $200 billion to target in future.

The yuan got some support after a Bloomberg News report said the Chinese central bank had emphasised the need for currency stability to the country's lenders as it looks to halt a slide in recent months.

It said officials called on bosses to prevent "herd behaviour" and momentum-chasing moves in the forex markets, fearing a run on the yuan similar to 2015-16, which hammered the unit and sent global markets into a tailspin.

The report comes after Friday's move by the People's Bank of China to make it harder to bet against the currency.

"This move is consistent with what the PBoC did earlier -- it can be considered as preemptive efforts made to slow the yuan’s depreciation, prevent one-sided bets on weakness and avoid a sense of panic," Eddie Cheung, Asia foreign-exchange strategist at Standard Chartered in Hong Kong, told Bloomberg.

Energy firms remain popular as oil prices rise on the back of worries about the trade row and a drop in Saudi Arabian output.

Both main contracts were flat in Asia after clocking up big gains on Tuesday.

Prices also got support from the US reimposing a first round of sanctions on Tehran after leaving the nuclear deal, with an embargo on the country's crude exports in November.

Trump warned other countries against doing business with Iran in the face of the sanctions, saying they would be refused from trading with the United States.

"The entreaty of the Americans that anyone who will do business with them (Iran) won't be able to do business in the US is something to watch," said Greg McKenna, chief markets strategist at AxiTrader.

Key figures at 0230 GMT

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.4 percent at 22,750.48 (break)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.1 percent at 28,282.28

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 2,764.45

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1602 from $1.1597 at 2130 GMT

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2936 from $1.2938

Dollar/yen: UP at 111.40 yen from 111.37 yen

Oil - West Texas Intermediate: UP five cents at $69.22 per barrel

Oil - Brent Crude: DOWN seven cents at $74.58 per barrel

New York - Dow Jones: UP 0.5 percent at 25,628.91 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.7 percent at 7,718.48 (close)

source: philstar.com