Asia Summary
Asian equities have traded mixed on today’s session. Overall, trading has been fairly quiet amid the batch of data seen out of Japan and South Korea. Looking ahead, Euro Zone Sept Preliminary CPI is due to be released along with the US Sept Chicago PMI data. Central bank speak is also on the agenda with comments expected from the BoE’s Carney, ECB’s Draghi and Fed’s Harker.
China offshore yuan (CNH) money market rates rise sharply ahead of upcoming National Day Golden Week holidays, as Chinese markets will be closed next week.
Key economic data
(AU) AUSTRALIA AUG PRIVATE SECTOR CREDIT M/M: 0.5% V 0.5%E; Y/Y: 5.5% V 5.5%E
(JP) JAPAN AUG NATIONAL CPI Y/Y: 0.7% V 0.6%E; CORE (EX-FRESH FOOD) Y/Y: 0.7% V 0.7%E
(JP) JAPAN SEPT TOKYO CPI Y/Y: 0.5% V 0.6%E; CORE (EX-FRESH FOOD) Y/Y: 0.5% V 0.5%E
(JP) JAPAN AUG PRELIM INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: 2.1% V 1.8%E; Y/Y: 5.4% V 5.2%E
(JP) JAPAN AUG JOBLESS RATE: 2.8% V 2.8%E; JOB-TO-APPLICANT RATIO: 1.52 V 1.53E
(JP) JAPAN AUG RETAIL SALES M/M: -1.7% V -0.5%E; RETAIL TRADE Y/Y: 1.7% V 2.5%E
(JP) JAPAN AUG OVERALL HOUSEHOLD SPENDING: 0.6% V 0.9%E
(KR) SOUTH KOREA AUG INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: 0.4% V 0.5%E; Y/Y: 2.7% V 1.3%E
(KR) SOUTH KOREA AUG BOP CURRENT ACCOUNT BALANCE: $6.06B V $7.26B PRIOR; GOODS BALANCE: $9.31B V $10.7B PRIOR
(KR) South Korea Aug Cyclical Leading Index: 0.0 v 0.2 prior
(KR) South Korea Oct Business Manufacturing Survey: 79 v 83 prior; Non-Manufacturing Survey: 78 v 78 prior
(NZ) New Zealand Aug Building Permits m/m: 10.2% v 1.7% prior
(NZ) RBNZ 2017 Annual Report: New Zealand’s economy and financial system are sound
(UK) UK SEPT GFK CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: -9 V -11E
(UK) UK Sept Lloyds Business Barometer: 23 v 17 prior
Speakers and Press
China
(CN) China Premier Li Keqiang said to stay for another term – HK Press
(CN) China Investment Corp (CIC) said to end Aug with assets over $900B – Chinese Press
(CN) China said to raise fuel prices from Sept 30th
Other
(JP) BoJ Sept Meeting Minutes: One member said more easing is necessary to stimulate demand**Note: At the Sept BoJ meeting, the incoming member Kataoka was the lone dissenter (8 to 1 vote). The official said then that the yield curve control is not enough to meet the inflation target; Also, the official saw a low chance of CPI increasing from 2018.
(JP) Japan Fin Min Aso: Confirms need to delay FY2020 primary balance target ‘a bit’
(KR) South Korea Finance Ministry: Affirms sees 2017 GDP growth at 3%; To continue to monitor global financial markets during 10-day holidays; Uncertainty high ahead of North Korea’s party foundation day on Oct 10th.
(KR) South Korea Financial Regulator: Bans all forms of initial coin offerings in the country
Asian Equity Indices/Futures (00:30ET)
Nikkei -0.1%, Hang Seng +0.2%, Shanghai Composite +0.3%%, ASX200 +0.2%, Kospi +0.7%
Equity Futures: S&P500 flat; Nasdaq +0.1% , Dax flat , FTSE100 flat
FX ranges/Commodities/Fixed Income (00:30ET)
EUR 1.1776-1.1791; JPY 112.27-112.69; AUD 0.7839-0.7858; NZD 0.7208-0.7238
Aug Gold -0.1% at 1,287/oz; Aug Crude Oil -0.1% at $51.51/brl; Sept Copper -0.1% at $2.975/lb
GLD SPDR Gold Trust ETF daily holdings flat at 864.7 metric tons
(CN) China PBOC sets yuan reference rate at 6.6369 v 6.6285 prior
(CN) PBOC OMO: SKIPS V INJECTED CNY70B IN 14 AND 28-DAY REVERSE REPOS PRIOR; net drain CNY160B
(AU) Australia sells A$800M in 2028 Bonds, avg yield 2.8913%, bid to cover 5.43x
(NZ) New Zealand sells NZ$150M in 3.5% April 2033 Bonds, avg yield 3.2958%, implied bid to cover 3.33x
Equities notable movers
Australia
Pilbara Minerals, PLS.AU China’s Great Wall Motor to give update on plan to buy up to 3.5% stake; +18%
Japan
Yamato Holdings, 9064.JP Some disappointment with medium term outlook; -5.5%
US markets on close: Dow +0.2%, S&P500 +0.1%, Nasdaq flat, Russell +0.3%
Best Sector in S&P500: Real Estate +0.7%
Worst Sector in S&P500: Consumer Discretionary -0.1%
At the close: VIX 9.55 (-0.32 pts); Treasuries: 2-yr 1.459% (-2bps), 10-yr 2.312% (flat), 30-yr 2.871% (+1bp)
US Market Summary
US stocks rallied off of opening lows to end the day about flat, after US GDP and jobless claims data were largely in line with expectations and as Republicans continued to make their case for tax cuts. Treasury yield curves saw steepening trades remain entrenched, with long rates extending modestly higher after a strong 7-year note sale. The Dollar index broke a three-day winning streak but the giveback was benign. The US IPO market heated up with four NASDAQ issues opening for trade including a 50% pop for Roku. Materials and healthcare names were outperformers on the day, while consumer discretionary and industrials lagged slightly.
US Afterhours Movers
ATEN Raises Q3 Rev $59-60M v $55.6Me (prior $53-57M); EVP sales to leave company; +24.8% afterhours
SGH Reports Q4 $0.79 v $0.64e, Rev $223.0M v $211Me; Guides Q1 $0.79-0.83 v $0.68e, Rev $225-240M v $211Me, gross margin 21-22%; +6.7% afterhours
TSN Raises FY17 $5.20-5.30 v $5.09e (prior $4.95-5.05); plans to reduce headcount by ~450 positions; +4.9% afterhours
HLT Files to sell 14.6M shares by holder Blackstone (4.5% of shares outstanding) via GS: -1.4% afterhours
PRTA Reports results from Phase 1b multiple ascending dose study of PRX003 in patients with Psoriasis; Prerequisites were not met; -5.5% afterhours
