A rally that pushed global equities to a record stalled Thursday ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on a monetary policy framework review. Treasuries edged higher.
Asian stocks traded mixed, with Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong declining, while China posted modest gains and Australia outperformed. U.S. futures dipped while Europe’s were flat. A surge in technology shares earlier pushed the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite to fresh highs for a fourth straight day.
Oil remained near a five-month high ahead of expected disruption from Hurricane Laura, which is set to slam ashore Thursday morning. The offshore yuan traded at around the highest since January amid signs of tight liquidity, while the dollar was steady. Australian bonds advanced on fresh quantitative easing purchases.
Next up for traders will be the closely watched Jackson Hole symposium later Thursday, when Powell will speak. Investors are also monitoring the progress of coronavirus vaccines, while governments and central banks around the world continue to support economies on their recovery paths. U.S. durable goods orders were more than double estimates, indicating factories will help support the economic rebound in coming months.
“Markets are now turning bullishly focused on U.S. Fed Chair Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole, which is expected to be a very market-friendly delivery,” said Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at AxiCorp. “After all, I do not think anyone is willing to bet against the Fed finding a way to sound overtly dovish, especially during this pandemic-induced easing cycle.”
U.S.-China tensions over the South China Sea escalated on Wednesday with Beijing firing four missiles into the disputed waterway and the Trump administration strengthening action against companies that helped set up outposts in the region.
Here are some key events coming up:
- The U.S. Republican National Convention continues.
- Fed Chair Powell speaks at an event on Thursday.
Franklin Templeton President and Chief Executive Officer Jenny Johnson believes the era of the star fund manager is over, saying the support of a large team has always been critical to investing success.
Source: Bloomberg
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- S&P 500 futures slipped 0.1% as of 1:45 p.m. in Tokyo. The gauge rose 1% on Wednesday.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 0.6%.
- Japan’s Topix index fell 0.5%.
- Shanghai Composite rose 0.3%.
- South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.9%.
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.4%.
- Euro Stoxx 50 futures slipped less than 0.1%.
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed.
- The yen was at 105.94 per dollar.
- The offshore yuan traded at 6.8777 per dollar.
- The euro bought $1.1834, little changed.
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell to 0.68%.
- Australia’s 10-year yield fell four basis points to 0.91%.
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude was flat at $43.35 a barrel.
- Gold lost 0.5% to $1,945.98 an ounce.
Source: Bloomberg
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