Asian equities look set to open lower Wednesday in subdued trading following a holiday for US markets. Major currencies were little changed.
Futures for Hong Kong, Japan and Australia all declined, while contracts for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 edged lower.
Global stock market trading was light on Tuesday given the Independence Day celebration in the US. Europe’s Stoxx 600 inched up on trading volume that was a third lower than the 30-day average.
Deal activity also sparked investor interest on Tuesday. Vienna-based OMV AG surged after a report the firm and Abu Dhabi are in talks to create a chemicals and plastics company worth more than $30 billion.
Investors in Asia will be looking to the Caixin China purchasing managers’ index for further clues on the health of the world’s second largest economy. The nation’s stock market has underperformed global and regional benchmarks this year and the currency has been under downward pressure.
Looking further ahead, Friday’s US nonfarm payrolls report will be a key event for markets that offers hints on the trajectory of monetary policy.
The yuan was little changed in early trading Wednesday. It will be in focus later in the morning when China’s central bank announces its daily fix for the currency.
The yen was slightly stronger than the 145 level versus the dollar but still in an area that creates unease among policymakers in Tokyo. The Australian dollar steadied following whipsaw-like moves Tuesday when the central bank held interest rates unchanged while warning there may be increases ahead.
After US stocks rallied hard in the first half of the year, investors are now worried that higher rates and a worsening economic backdrop will limit gains from here on.
Citigroup Inc.’s Chris Montagu said positioning looks “very extended” and cited data showing that investors piled into bullish bets on US stock futures toward the end of June.
Among other notes of caution, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists wrote that it’s too early to dismiss the risk of higher interest rates weighing on stocks.
Elsewhere in markets, Brent crude traded near $76 a barrel on Tuesday as oil traders considered the effects of output cuts. West Texas Intermediate was near $71 a barrel.
On Monday, Saudi Arabia said that it will prolong a unilateral 1 million barrel-a-day supply reduction into August, a move traders had widely expected. Russia announced a reduction in exports, while Algeria planned to make more modest curbs.
Key events this week:
- China Caixin services and composite PMI, Wednesday
- Eurozone S&P Global Eurozone services PMI, PPI, Wednesday
- OPEC International Seminar, speakers including OPEC+ oil ministers, kicks off in Vienna, Wednesday
- FOMC issues minutes on June policy meeting, Wednesday
- New York Fed President John Williams in “fireside chat” at meeting of the Central Bank Research Association at the New York Fed, Wednesday
- US initial jobless claims, trade, ISM services, job openings, Thursday
- Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan speaks on a panel about the policy challenges for central banks at CEBRA meeting, Thursday
- US unemployment rate, nonfarm payrolls, Friday
- ECB’s Christine Lagarde addresses an event in France, Friday
Some of the main moves in markets today:
Stocks
- S&P 500 futures fell 0.1% as of 7:57 a.m. Tokyo time.
- Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.1%
- Nikkei 225 futures fell 0.4%
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index futures fell 0.2%
- Hang Seng Index futures fell 0.4%
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
- The euro was little changed at $1.0881
- The Japanese yen was little changed at 144.46 per dollar
- The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.2302 per dollar
- The Australian dollar was unchanged at $0.6692
Cryptocurrencies
- Bitcoin was little changed at $30,821.35
- Ether was little changed at $1,941.57
Bonds
- Australia’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.02%
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
