Global Markets Report - 14 May
ASX set to open lower, after the Dow ended its recent upswing.
Australia
Australian shares are set to open lower, after the Dow ended its recent upswing.
ASX futures were down 0.1% or 8 points as of 8:00am on Tuesday, suggesting a lower open.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell, snapping its longest winning streak of the year, as markets braced for fresh inflation data in the coming days.
The blue-chip index lost 0.2%, or about 81 points, falling after eight sessions of gains, while the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.
In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was up 0.8% to US$83.43 a barrel, while gold was up 0.1% at US$2,337.52.
In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was flat at 4.02% while the 10 Year yield was also unchanged at 4.32%. US Treasury notes were down, with the 2 Year yield at 4.86% and the 10 Year yield at 4.49%.
The Australian dollar was 66.06 US cents, down from its previous close of 66.07. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was down at 99.80.
Asia
Chinese shares closed lower as investors digested inflation data released over the weekend that showed consumer prices edged up in April and factory-gate prices continuing their fall. Lithium and energy stocks led the losses with Tianqi Lithium losing 3.1% and Ganfeng Lithium falling 2.9%. EVE Energy declined 2.5%. Among individual gainers, Mango Excellent Media rose 11.7% after its flagship "Singer" program returned to air on Friday and went viral online. WuXi AppTec rose 3.0% after a U.S. bill was revised to give American companies time to decouple from Chinese biotech firms. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closed 0.2% lower at 3148.02, and the Shenzhen Composite Index and ChiNext Price Index each ended 0.95% lower.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.8% to 19,115.06.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average edged down 0.1% to close at 38179.46, weighed by losses among construction stocks. Global risk appetite continues to be swayed by the Fed's rhetoric sounding more cautious about interest-rate cuts given persistent inflation, OCBC Global Markets Research said in a note. Among Japanese construction names, Penta-Ocean Construction slid 12%, Shimizu Corp. slipped 8.9% and Taisei Corp. lost 8.1%. Nissin Foods Holdings dropped 6.4% after reporting FY results. USD/JPY was at 155.84, compared with 155.62 as of Friday's Tokyo stock-market close. The JGB 10-year yield was up 3.5 bps at 0.940%.
Indian shares ended slightly higher ahead key U.S. economic data. "Global risk appetite continues to be swayed by Fed's rhetoric sounding more cautious about rate cuts given persistent inflation," OCBC analysts said in a note. All eyes are on a slew of U.S. economic data this week, with April CPI data in focus. On the local bourse, gains in bank and steel stocks offset the weakness in auto companies. HDFC Bank gained 1.3% and Axis Bank rose 1.2%. JSW Steel and Tata Steel ended up 0.7% and 0.9%, respectively. Mahindra & Mahindra edged 0.2% lower and Tata Motors slipped 8.3% after 4Q results. India's benchmark Sensex ended 0.15% higher at 72776.13.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. slipped Monday, as the FTSE 100 Index declined 0.2% to 8414.99.
Among large companies, Burford Capital Ltd. posted the largest decline, dropping 6.2% to GBP1,176.00, followed by shares of Alpha Group International PLC, which fell 4.4% to GBP2,170.00. Shares of Oxford Instruments PLC fell 3.7% to GBP2,335.00.
Diploma PLC was the biggest gainer during the session, gaining 4.0% to GBP4,060.00, and Future PLC gained 3.9% to GBP862.00. BT Group PLC rounded out the top three movers on Monday, as shares gained 3.4% to GBP108.95.
In other parts of Europe, the STOXX Europe 600 Index was flat from the previous close. Germany's DAX lost 0.2% to 18,742.22 and France's CAC 40 slipped 0.1% to 8,209.28.
North America
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell, snapping its longest winning streak of the year, as markets braced for fresh inflation data in the coming days.
The blue-chip index lost 0.2%, or about 81 points, falling after eight sessions of gains, while the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3%.
Investors are hoping new data this week will show inflation easing after several months of firmer-than-expected readings. Lingering price pressures have kept the Federal Reserve from beginning to cut interest rates, a move that tends to boost stock prices.
Traders and money managers will get their next look at how inflation is faring with the release of the producer-price index on Tuesday, followed by the highly anticipated consumer-price index on Wednesday.
"I think we're really just all in wait-and-see mode," said Dan Eye, chief investment officer at Fort Pitt Capital Group. "No big bets ahead of the CPI report."
Nine of the S&P 500's 11 sectors ticked lower Monday. The technology group bucked the trend, rising 0.5% with the help of gains by Apple and Nvidia. The real-estate segment added 0.3%.
Major indexes have rallied lately on signs that the U.S. economy remains strong even as slower hiring keeps alive hopes that the central bank could begin to trim rates.
Investors say they also have been pleased by the earnings season that is wrapping up. With most reports in, analysts expect that earnings from S&P 500 companies rose 5.4% in the first quarter, the highest earnings growth since the second quarter of 2022, according to FactSet.
The S&P 500 has advanced 3.7% in May and 9.5% so far this year.
The rally has stocks looking increasingly expensive. The S&P 500 traded late last week at 20.6 times its projected earnings over the next 12 months, above a 10-year average of 18.1, according to FactSet.
The richer valuations have some investors ascribing particular importance to the Fed's decisions on interest rates. Lower rates tend to boost the appeal of investing in the stock market, partly by making bonds relatively less appealing.
"We're trading at levels now that if the interest rates are not cut...the market is going to grow very slowly from here," said Dan Genter, chief executive and chief investment officer at Genter Capital Management. "Everything has to be perfect."
Government-bond yields have ticked lower lately. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note slipped to 4.479% Monday from 4.503% on Friday. The 10-year's yield settled at a 2024 high of 4.706% on April 25.
Elsewhere Monday, meme-stock mania reared its head again. A social-media account associated with Keith Gill, the investor known as "Roaring Kitty, " sent its first post since 2021, when he focused online followers on the retailer GameStop.
GameStop shares soared 74% Monday, their largest percentage increase since February 2021, and were halted for volatility several times. Shares of AMC Entertainment, another meme-stock favorite, jumped 78%, while Hertz Global rose 12% and Plug Power gained 13%.