chachamar
Asia-Pacific stocks were mostly lower on Thursday as the yen fell sharply to a 38-year low and market participants reassessed the outlook for the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy.
Japan(NKY:IND) -0.85%. Japan’s May retail sales rise more than expected; yen falls to 38-year low against dollar. The yen depreciated by more than 160 against the dollar, hitting its lowest level since 1986, putting Japanese authorities under pressure to defend the yen’s exchange rate. Strong retail sales data and a sharp depreciation of the yen have triggered expectations that the Bank of Japan may raise interest rates at its July meeting.
China (Shanghai Composite Index) -0.55%. Chinese stocks fell to a four-month low, giving up the previous session’s gains amid caution ahead of official PMI data and rising chip tensions between China and the United States.
China’s industrial profit growth slowed sharply in May, and growth in the first five months of this year also weakened.
Hong Kong (Hang Seng Index) -1.92%.
India (SENSEX) +0.18%. The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE Sensex) continued its upward momentum, driven by optimism over the Union Budget 2024-2025, rising foreign capital inflows and strong domestic economic data.
Australia (AS51) -0.73%. Australian consumer inflation is expected to rise to 4.4% in June 2024 from a 2-1/2-year low of 4.1% in May.
Three major U.S. stock indexes ended choppy trading slightly higher on Wednesday as investors held off major bets ahead of a key personal consumption spending report later this week.
Dow Jones U.S. stock futures fall on Thursday -0.13%; S&P 500 Index -0.20%; Nasdaq -0.25%.
Market participants now look forward to Thursday’s data on U.S. jobless claims, durable goods orders and existing home sales, as well as Friday’s personal consumption expenditures inflation report.
Major events such as Thursday’s first U.S. presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump and Sunday’s French election are also in the spotlight.
Meanwhile, escalating conflicts in the Middle East, rising tensions between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah, and Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil infrastructure continue to stoke concerns about supply disruptions.
currency: (Japanese yen: U.S. dollar), (RMB: U.S. dollar), (Australian dollar: U.S. dollar), (Indian rupee: U.S. dollar), (Hong Kong dollar: U.S. dollar), (New Zealand dollar: U.S. dollar).
