Friday 22nd February: Asian markets mixed – as investors look into trade talks

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Global Markets:

  • Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.16%, Shanghai Composite up 1.46%, Hang Seng up 0.15%, ASX up 0.46%
  • Commodities : Gold at $1327.55 (-0.02%), Silver at $15.81 (+0.04%), Brent Oil at $67.08 (+0.01%), WTI Oil at $57.00 (+0.07%)
  • Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.682, UK 10-year yield at 1.202, Germany 10-year yield at 0.124

News & Data:

  • (USD) Philly Fed Manufacturing Index -4.1 vs 14.1 expected
  • (USD) Durable Goods Orders m/m 1.20% vs 1.60% expected
  • (USD) Core Durable Goods Orders m/m 0.10% vs 0.30% expected
  • (GBP) Public Sector Net Borrowing -15.8B vs -11.1B expected
  • (EUR) Flash Services PMI 52.3 vs 51.4 expected
  • (EUR) Flash Manufacturing PMI 49.2 vs 50.3 expected
  • (EUR) German Flash Services PMI 55.1 vs 52.8 expected
  • (EUR) German Flash Manufacturing PMI 47.6 vs 49.7 expected
  • (EUR) French Flash Manufacturing PMI 51.4 vs 51 expected
  • (EUR) French Flash Services PMI 49.8 vs 48.6 expected

Markets Update:

Shares in Asia were mixed on Friday as a deteriorating global economic outlook outweighed further signs of progress in trade talks between China and the United States.

The Japanese market is declining after four straight days of gains following the losses on Wall Street as disappointing U.S. economic data raised concerns about a global economic slowdown. Mainland Chinese markets were trading higher. The Shanghai composite was higher by 1.5%, while the Shenzhen composite was higher by 1.7%. The Nikkei 225 in Japan slipped 0.2 percent in afternoon trade while the Topix declined 0.3 percent as shares of robot maker Fanuc fell around 0.3 percent. South Korea’s Kospi traded flat, as chipmaker SK Hynix saw its stock declining more 1 percent. In Australia, the ASX 200 advanced 0.46 percent in afternoon trade.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was steady at 96.602. The Australian dollar rebounded after tumbling more than 1 percent Thursday on a Reuters report that China’s northern port of Dalian has placed an indefinite ban on imports of Australian coal.

U.S. crude gained 0.07 percent to $57.00 a barrel. Brent crude also gained 0.01 percent to $67.08. Gold rebounded after falling more than 1 percent on Thursday, with spot gold trading mostly flat at $1,327.55 per ounce

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