(Bloomberg) — Stocks in Asia were mixed at the start of a week filled with central bank policy decisions, while Chinese investors continued to hold out for signs of more support.
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Equities advanced in Japan after a report late Friday stated that Bank of Japan officials see little urgent need to address the side effects of their ultra-loose monetary policy.
Things were less upbeat in Hong Kong and China as stocks declined. Chinese shares notched their worst week in four on Friday, despite a series of vows to boost consumption and businesses.
Traders are gearing up for possible signs of further stimulus as a Politburo meeting approaches. But expectations among global fund managers are low as Beijing tries to prop up growth without the kind of strong action that may create asset bubbles.
“The market is high on expectations (for stimulus) but have so far refrained from expressing a strong view in financial assets, and the CN50, CHINAH and yuan have yet to see any trend,” Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group Ltd., wrote in a note.
Contracts for US shares were mostly flat in Asia on Monday after the S&P 500 closed little changed on Friday and the Nasdaq 100 saw continued selling in technology companies following a disappointing batch of results earlier in the week.
The yen edged higher after weakening more than 2% last week, with the sharpest part of the move coming following the BOJ report. Most major currencies traded within narrow ranges versus the dollar Monday.
The offshore yuan was little changed at around 7.18 to the dollar. The People’s Bank of China on Monday set the daily reference rate for the yuan at a stronger level than the average estimate.
“7.3 should be a cyclical low for the Chinese yuan” if the PBOC is ready to pump more liquidity at the same as the Federal Reserve is close to its tightening cycle, Hao Hong, partner and chief economist at Grow Investment Group, told Bloomberg Television.
Treasury yields were little changed across tenors in Asian trading hours. Yields on long-dated Australian bonds were flat, while those on New Zealand notes declined.
Eyes on Central Banks
Earnings and central bank decisions will be in focus this week. US heavyweights including Alphabet Inc., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc. are all due to report, while in Asia investors will be watching names including Samsung Electronics Co., Rio Tinto and Hitachi Ltd.
Traders are positioning for the Fed and the European Central Bank to raise interest rates and to signal whether more hikes are likely. The BOJ is projected to stand pat, letting the rate gap with its peers widen as it waits for sustainable inflation.
“The Fed should not signal another skip in September, as doing so for the June meeting really handcuffed the Fed at a time when it needed maximum flexibility,” Win Thin, global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., wrote in a note. “Given how firm the labor market remains, we believe the right thing for the Fed to do is to emphasize a more data-dependent approach and stress that a skip in September should not be assumed.”
In commodities, oil edged down after notching its fourth weekly gain amid tentative signs that global markets are tightening. Gold opened the week little changed after slipping against a stronger dollar on Friday.
Key events this week:
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Eurozone S&P Global Manufacturing & Services PMI, Monday
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UK S&P Global / CIPS UK Manufacturing & Services PMI, Monday
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US Conf. Board consumer confidence, Tuesday
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US new home sales, Wednesday
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FOMC rate decision, Fed Chair Powell news conference, Wednesday
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China industrial profits, Thursday
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ECB rate decision, Thursday
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US GDP, durable goods orders, initial jobless claims, wholesale inventories, Thursday
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Japan Tokyo CPI, Friday
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BOJ rate decision, Friday
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Eurozone economic confidence, consumer confidence, Friday
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US consumer income, employment cost index, University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
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S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 10:37 a.m. Tokyo time. The S&P 500 was little changed Friday
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Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed. The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.3%
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Japan’s Topix index rose 0.9%
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Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.5%
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China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.4%
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Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index was little changed
Currencies
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The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
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The euro was little changed at $1.1123
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The Japanese yen was little changed at 141.64 per dollar
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The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1857 per dollar
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The Australian dollar was little changed at $0.6724
Cryptocurrencies
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Bitcoin fell 0.7% to $29,933.13
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Ether fell 0.7% to $1,880.29
Bonds
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The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 3.84%
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Japan’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 0.450%
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Australia’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.00%
Commodities
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Brett Miller and Abhishek Vishnoi.
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