07/08/2023
Today’s Announcements & News
Asia
On Friday, Asia-Pacific markets experienced mixed performance as rising bond yields continued to exert pressure on equities following the U.S. credit downgrade by Fitch.
IG market analyst Tony Sycamore pointed out that the yield on the U.S. 30-year bond rose by 14 basis points overnight to 4.30%, approaching its October 2022 high of 4.42%. The increase in long-end yields was influenced by factors such as bond issuance, resilient economic data, and Fitch’s recent downgrade of the U.S. credit rating.
In Australia, the Reserve Bank of Australia lowered the country’s growth outlook for 2023 but expressed optimism that inflation was moving in the right direction. Despite this, the S&P/ASX 200 index managed to rise by 0.19% and closed at 7,325.3.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index edged up 0.1% and ended the day at 32,192.75, while the broader Topix index recorded a larger gain of 0.28% to close at 2,274.63.
South Korea’s Kospi index fell by 0.1%, extending its losing streak to three days, and closed at 2,602.8. The Kosdaq index also declined by 0.21%, ending at 918.43.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index pared earlier gains but still climbed 0.55% in its final hour of trade. Mainland Chinese markets also performed well, with the Shanghai Composite rising by 0.23% to close at 3,288.08, and the Shenzhen Component increasing by 0.7% to finish at 11,238.06.
US
On Friday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both experienced their fourth consecutive session of losses, leading to their worst weekly performances since March. Traders appeared to be taking profits after assessing the latest corporate earnings reports and U.S. jobs data.
The S&P 500 index fell by 0.53% to close at 4,478.03, while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.36% to settle at 13,909.24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 150.27 points, or 0.43%, to end at 35,065.62.
During afternoon trading, all major indexes reversed their earlier gains and ended the week with losses. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 dropped about 2.9% and 2.3%, respectively, marking their worst weeks since March. The Dow edged down 1.1%.
Commodity
Gold prices experienced a rise on Friday, supported by a slightly weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report, which resulted in lower dollar and Treasury yields. The nonfarm payrolls data showed an increase of 187,000 jobs in the last month, falling slightly below the economists’ forecast of 200,000 jobs.
As of 11:08 a.m. EDT (1508 GMT), spot gold was up 0.3% to $1,938.69 per ounce. However, despite the gain on Friday, gold was still on track for its worst week in six, with a 1% decline so far.
U.S. gold futures also increased by 0.3% to $1,974.10 per ounce.
The above analysis is only for the views of market researchers and is for reference only and is not regarded as a specific investment suggestion.
