Asia Stocks Face Mixed Open With Focus on Rates: Markets Wrap
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1970-01-01 08:00
Asian stocks are poised for a mixed opening, reflecting Wall Street’s cautious start to a week with rate

Asian stocks are poised for a mixed opening, reflecting Wall Street’s cautious start to a week with rate decisions by major central banks that will likely set the tone for global markets for the rest of the year.

Futures in Japan and Australia point to marginal declines, while Hong Kong shares may edge higher. Stocks, bonds and the dollar saw small moves on Monday, with the S&P 500 closing near 4,450. Brent oil pared gains after almost hitting $95 a barrel earlier in the session in a move that added to inflation concerns.

Apple Inc. climbed, while Tesla Inc. dropped as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lowered its earnings estimates for the electric-vehicle giant. Treasury 10-year yields edged lower and those on two-year notes remained above 5%. Grocery delivery business Instacart became one of the biggest companies to go public this year when its priced its initial public offering at the top of a marketed range in the second marquee listing in a week.

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While investors on Tuesday will study the tone of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s minutes from its September policy meeting for fresh clues on its inflation fight, monetary policy will be determined at key meetings across half of the Group of 20 from Wednesday with the Federal Reserve. Advanced-economy central banks may draw particular focus as global policymakers adapt to the theme US officials set out at Jackson Hole in August: Rates will likely stay higher for longer.

With the Fed widely expected to keep rates on hold this week, traders will be focused on the so-called dot plot summary of economic forecasts. The two main questions are whether policymakers will retain their projections for one more 25 basis-point hike by year-end — and how much easing they are penciling in for 2024. In June, they projected 1 percentage point of cuts.

“We think the Fed will take a ‘hawkish pause’ this week and the futures market will reprice a higher probability for another rate hike before year end,” said Megan Horneman, chief investment officer at Verdence Capital Advisors. “Unfortunately, inflation is very easy to reignite especially if energy prices begin to filter into broad prices. Therefore, we think the Fed will need to insinuate they may not be done raising rates.”

The Fed will probably continue to sound hawkish, with one remaining hike still penciled in for 2023 and the prospect of very slow easing, according to David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management. Still, while policymakers may plan for a gentle drop in rates, there’s risk of an economic downturn that would trigger much more rapid easing, he noted.

“It makes sense to be well diversified, with a relatively defensive position across equities and extending duration in within fixed income, as the risk of an economic stumble grows on the descent from the mountain of monetary tightening, Kelly added.

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To Paul Nolte at Murphy & Sylvest Wealth Management, the two weakest months of the year are living up to expectations and following the typical pattern.

“That playbook would argue for further weakness into mid/late October before a year-end rally,” Nolte added. “Much of the rally is on the back of expectations that earnings will rise this quarter. Those higher earnings typically push stocks higher, but much of the market is already richly priced on a historical basis, so there may not be much room to push.”

Meanwhile, oil’s ascent into overbought territory leaves the market vulnerable to a correction. Earlier in the session, crude dropped more than $1 after Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser lowered the company’s long-term demand outlook and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said “the jury is still out” on China consumption.

China remains in the spotlight, with its central bank Governor Pan Gongsheng vowing on Monday at a symposium attended by representatives from companies including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Tesla Inc. that it will strengthen efforts to stabilize trade and improve the business environment for foreign firms. Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in New York that the trade relationship between the US and China is a “win-win” and it would disastrous for the two largest economies to decouple.

Corporate Highlights

Key events this week:

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

Currencies

Cryptocurrencies

Bonds

Commodities

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

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