Stock Rally Cools in Asia, Copper Nears Record: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — The record-setting advance in global equities took a breather in Asian trading, as investors braced for a flurry of earnings from megacap technology companies and policy announcements from major central banks this week.
MSCI’s Asia Pacific gauge dipped 0.2% as indexes in Japan and South Korea retreated from their all-time highs. An index in Shanghai broke above the psychological barrier of 4,000 for the first time in a decade. The moves came after US indexes had closed at all-time highs as Chinese and US trade negotiators lined up an array of diplomatic wins for Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to unveil at a summit this week.
Easing trade tensions have helped fuel a stock rally, while US companies have so far emerged largely unscathed by tariffs, protecting margins through price increases and cost cuts. That optimism faces a reality check this week as investors look to the Federal Reserve meeting for clues on the path of rate cuts, while major technology firms including Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. reveal whether earnings momentum can be sustained.
“With the Fed on track to cut rates, extending the run would appear to hinge on this week’s lineup of high-profile earnings releases,” said Chris Larkin at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.
In other corners of the market, the yuan climbed to its strongest level in nearly a year, amid optimism over a potential China-US trade deal. The yen also gained while a gauge of the dollar edged lower for a second day. Treasuries were little changed. Gold held near $4,000 an ounce as progress in trade talks sapped demand for haven assets.
Copper — a bellwether for global growth — advanced and traded roughly $60 shy of a record set last year as investors assessed the cooling of trade tensions between the US and China.
Technology stocks were in focus after Amazon.com planned to cut as many as 30,000 jobs, Reuters reported. Earlier, Qualcomm Inc. shares rose to their highest price in 15 months after unveiling chips and computers for the lucrative AI data center market, aiming to challenge Nvidia Corp. in the fastest-growing part of the industry.
On Wednesday and Thursday, five firms that account for about a quarter of the US benchmark — Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., Amazon.com and Apple Inc. — will report results. A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps jumped 2.6%.
On trade, Trump told reporters on Monday that “I really feel good” about a deal with China, after officials unveiled a slew of agreements to ease tensions.
While markets cheered the latest developments, some analysts cautioned the deal now teed up for Trump and Xi to sign in South Korea ignored thorny issues.
Fundamental fights over national security appeared untouched, they said, along with Trump’s stated core mission of rebalancing trade. Making that harder, Chinese investment into America remains heavily restricted.
“While these developments have lifted market spirits, analysts remain skeptical that the underlying issues — such as national security and tech competition — will be fully resolved,” said Fawad Razaqzada at City Index and Forex.com. “Nevertheless, traders have embraced the risk-on mood.”
What Bloomberg strategists say…
USD/JPY is slipping on Tuesday amid a combination of President Trump’s arrival in Japan, lower Treasury yields and supportive chatter from Japanese officials. Yet, what FX traders really want to see is more than two dissenters at this week’s Bank of Japan meeting to turn aggressively bullish on the yen.
— Mark Cranfield, Markets Live strategist. Click here for the full analysis.
Meanwhile, Trump hailed the US’s alliance with Japan, reaffirming ties with a longstanding partner and praising new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on her plans to ratchet up defense spending as the pair met in Tokyo. Trump and Takaichi signed a framework on critical minerals.
Takaichi is navigating implementation of a trade deal brokered under her predecessor that includes a nebulous pledge for Japan to fund $550 billion in US projects.
Corporate News:
Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd. shares soared after the Australian Financial Review reported Bain Capital is considering buying the fast-food chain in a deal worth as much as A$4 billion ($2.6 billion). Nidec Corp. shares tumbled as much as their daily limit of 19% on Tuesday as the company was set to be removed from the Nikkei 225 Stock Average and was flagged for special oversight by the Tokyo Stock Exchange. CSL Ltd. plunged to the lowest in almost seven years after Australia’s biggest drugmaker postponed plans to spin off its vaccines business, as falling US flu immunizations deepen concern over a slowdown in its Seqirus unit. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 12:01 p.m. Tokyo time Japan’s Topix fell 0.5% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5% Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.2% The Shanghai Composite was little changed Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.2% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1657 The Japanese yen rose 0.3% to 152.41 per dollar The offshore yuan rose 0.1% to 7.1016 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin fell 0.4% to $113,968.33 Ether fell 0.8% to $4,094.96 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 3.98% Japan’s 10-year yield declined 1.5 basis points to 1.650% Australia’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.17% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude was little changed Spot gold was little changed This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
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