Stock Markets Net Chng Stock Markets Net Chng S&P/ASX 200** NZX 50** 8.01 6,968.60 -47.00 11,594.94
DJIA** NIKKEI**
32,105.25 75.14 27,419.61 -47.00
Nasdaq** 1.01 FTSE**
11 7,499.6 -67.24
,787
.
40
S&P 500** 11.75 Hang Seng**
3,948.72 20,049.64 458.21
SPI 200 Fut STI**
6,950 -39.00 3,219 -1.98
SSEC** KOSPI**
3,286.6491 20.90 2,424.48 7.52
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Bonds Net Chng Bonds Net Chng
JP 10 YR Bond KR 10 YR Bond
0.301 0.001 3.262 -0.033
AU 10 YR Bond US 10 YR Bond
3.247 -0.055 3.3912 -0.109
NZ 10 YR Bond US 30 YR Bond
4.17 -0.023 3.6611 -0.036
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Currencies Net Chng Net Chng
SGD US$ KRW US$
1.3269 -0.0029 1,285.48 -12.37
AUD US$ NZD US$
0.6684 -0.00005 0.6247 0.0027
EUR US$ Yen US$
1.0832 -0.0023 130.62 -0.82
THB US$ PHP US$
34.02 -0.23 54.3 -0.1
IDR US$ INR US$
15,340 -15 82.236 -0.269
MYR US$ TWD US$
4.416 -0.036 30.372 -0.154
CNY US$ HKD US$
6.8286 -0.0614 7.8494 0.0023
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Commodities Net Chng Net Chng
Spot Gold Silver (Lon)
1,995.08 25.4989 23.0839 0.0589
U.S. Gold Fut Brent Crude
1,995.90 46.3 75.28 -1.41
Iron Ore CNY854 TRJCRB Index
-11.5 - -
TOCOM Rubber JPY206 LME Copper
1.9 9,037.5 156
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** indicates closing price
All prices as of 20:21 GMT
EQUITIES GLOBAL - Wall Street stocks jumped on Thursday, pushing up global stock indexes, and Treasury yields fell, after investors took comfort that the Federal Reserve might pause its interest rate rises to offset the turmoil in financial markets. The gains helped MSCI's main world share index to jump 0.85%. For a full report, click on - - - -
NEW YORK - Wall Street advanced on Thursday as market participants looked past remarks by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday and weighed the possibility that the central bank will pause its restrictive interest rate hikes in the near future. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 142.01 points, or 0.44%, to 32,172.12, the S&P 500 gained 26.11 points, or 0.66%, to 3,963.08 and the Nasdaq Composite added 151.81 points, or 1.3%, to 11,821.77. For a full report, click on - - - -
LONDON - European equities inched down on Thursday with banks leading declines after the Bank of England followed the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Swiss National Bank in hiking rates amid worries of a banking contagion. The continent-wide STOXX 600 index slipped 0.2% after closing at its highest level in more than a week on Wednesday. For a full report, click on - - - -
TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei share average closed lower on Thursday, although it hovered near the session high amid a recovery in broader Asian markets as investors assessed the U.S. Federal Reserve's hints of a pivot on its policy tightening. The Nikkei index ended 0.17% lower at 27,419.61, but hovered close to the day's high of 27,461.97. The broader Topix closed 0.29% weaker at 1,957.32, but held ground near the session's high of 1,960.14. For a full report, click on - - - -
SHANGHAI - China and Hong Kong stocks ended higher on Thursday, as the U.S. Federal Reserve softening its tone on future interest rate hikes boosted investor sentiment. China's blue-chip CSI300 Index closed up 1.0%, while the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6%. For a full report, click on - - - -
AUSTRALIA - Australian shares were set to fall on Friday, with local mining stocks likely tracking weak iron ore prices, while hawkish remarks by the U.S. Federal Reserve chair may further dent sentiment. The local share price index futures fell 0.5%, an 11.6 point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark slipped 0.7% on Thursday. For a full report, click on - - - -
SEOUL - The South Korean won rallied on Thursday after the Federal Reserve's meeting that signalled a pause in further rate hikes by the U.S. central bank. Stocks also rose. The benchmark KOSPI closed up 7.52 points, or 0.31%, at 2,424.48, reversing its early loss of 0.79%. The index hit the highest since March 8. For a full report, click on - - - -
FOREIGN EXCHANGE NEW YORK - The dollar pared earlier losses on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve sounded close to calling time on interest rate hikes, while the Swiss National Bank and Bank of England pushed ahead with further rate increases. The dollar index , which measures the currency against six major peers, was last up 0.078% at 102.510, set for its first winning day after five straight days of losses. For a full report, click on - - - -
CHINA - China's yuan firmed on Thursday as investors were relieved by more dovish comments from the U.S. central bank that reined in expectations for more interest rate hikes, boosting sentiment for the yuan and other Asian currencies. The spot yuan opened at 6.8522 per dollar and was changing hands at 6.8498 at midday, 82 pips stronger than the previous late session close and -0.31% from the midpoint. For a full report, click on - - - -
AUSTRALIA - The Australian and New Zealand currencies found their footing on Thursday, after markets sensed the end of a great tightening cycle by the Federal Reserve, although they remain vulnerable to risk sentiment amid persistent fears about banking turmoil. The Aussie surged 0.7% to $0.6730 , after a late tumble on Wall Street led to a pullback in the currency from its 2-1/2 week top of $0.6759. It now faces resistance at the 200-day moving average of $0.6760 and has support at $0.6657. For a full report, click on - - - -
SEOUL - The South Korean won rallied on Thursday after the Federal Reserve's meeting that signalled a pause in further rate hikes by the U.S. central bank.
The Korean won ended onshore trade 2.30% higher at 1,278.3 per dollar, after hitting the highest level since Feb. 15 at 1,276.5. It was the best daily performance since Nov. 11. For a full report, click on - - - -
TREASURIES
NEW YORK - U.S. Treasury yields dropped on Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve hiked rates by 25 basis points but indicated that it is on the verge of pausing further increases after the recent collapse of two U.S. banks. Benchmark 10-year note yields fell nine basis points to 3.410% and two-year yields dropped 17 basis points to 3.816%. For a full report, click on - - - -
LONDON - Euro zone government bond yields fell on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 basis points the previous day but signalled they were unlikely to climb much higher given the turmoil in global banking. Germany's 10-year bond yield , seen as a benchmark for the bloc, fell 10 bps to 2.24% on Thursday. It stood at an 11-year high of 2.77% at the start of March. For a full report, click on - - - -
TOKYO - Japanese government bond yields edged lower on Thursday tracking U.S. yields after the Federal Reserve hinted it was on the verge of pausing its rate tightening cycle in view of the current turmoil in the banking sector. The 10-year JGB yield declined 2 basis points (bps) to 0.305% as of 0500 GMT, while benchmark 10-year futures added 0.22 bp to 148.50. For a full report, click on COMMODITIES
GOLD Gold prices extended gains to a second straight session on Thursday, boosted by a slide in Treasury yields after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled an end to its monetary tightening cycle might be on the cards. Spot gold rose 1.2% to $1,993.09 per ounce by 2:59 p.m. ET (1859 GMT), while U.S. gold futures jumped 2.4% to settle at $1,995.90. For a full report, click on - - - -
IRON ORE
Singapore iron ore futures reversed course on Thursday, as a much weaker-than-expected demand for steel dented sentiment. The most-traded May iron ore futures contract on Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trading 2.01% lower at 854 yuan ($125.25)a tonne, extending losses for the fourth day in a row and the lowest since February 14. For a full report, click on - - - -
BASE METALS
Copper prices climbed to three-week peaks on Thursday, boosted by a weaker dollar as investors bet on a pause in U.S. interest rates hikes by the Federal Reserve and stronger demand in top consumer China. Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 1.7% at $9,037.5 a tonne at 1703 GMT, having earlier touched its highest since March 2 at $9,047.5 a tonne. For a full report, click on - - - -
OIL
Oil prices settled 1% lower on Thursday, reversing early gains after U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told lawmakers that refilling the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) may take several years. Brent crude futures fell by 78 cents, or 1%, to settle at $75.91 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures slid by 94 cents, or 1.3%, to end the session at $69.96 a barrel. For a full report, click on - - - -
PALM OIL
Malaysian palm oil futures slumped to a more than six-month closing low on Thursday tracking losses in rival edible oils, while caution as investors gauged the U.S. Federal Reserve's comments also weighed on sentiment. The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 93 ringgit, or 2.54%, to 3,571 ringgit ($808.65) a tonne, hitting its lowest closing since Oct. 4. For a full report, click on - - - -
RUBBER
Japanese rubber futures edged lower on Thursday, as a firmer yen and falling oil prices dragged the market, while traders braced themselves for more volatility after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday said the banking industry stress could trigger a credit crunch. Osaka Exchange's rubber contract for August delivery , finished 0.3 yen, or 0.2%, lower at 204.1 yen ($1.56) per kg. For a full report, click on - - - - (Bengaluru Bureau; +91 80 6749 1130)
