Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks retreat from 1-month high as Fed tempers rally

Published 2018-11-09, 01:50 a/m
Updated 2018-11-09, 02:00 a/m
© Reuters.  GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks retreat from 1-month high as Fed tempers rally

© Reuters. GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks retreat from 1-month high as Fed tempers rally

* MSCI Asia-Pacific index loses 1.3 pct, Nikkei sheds 1.05 pct

* Fed stands pat but still on track to gradually hike rates

* Dollar supported with short-term U.S. yields at decade highs

* Prospect of swelling global supply keeps crude near 8-mth lows

* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh

By Shinichi Saoshiro

TOKYO, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Asian stocks pulled back from a one-month high on Friday as the Federal Reserve looked set to deliver another interest rate hike next month, paring gains made earlier this week after U.S. midterm elections triggered a global equities rally.

Spreadbetters expected European stocks to follow Asia's lead and open lower, with Britain's FTSE .FTSE losing 0.45 percent, Germany's DAX .GDAXI slipping 0.3 percent and France's CAC .FCHI dipping 0.15 percent.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 1.3 percent and was headed for a loss of more than 1 percent for the week. On Thursday, the index hit its highest level since Oct. 8.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng .HSI lost 2.4 percent and the Shanghai Composite Index .SSEC fell 1.2 percent.

Australian stocks .AXJO slipped 0.1 percent, South Korea's KOSPI .KS11 edged down 0.05 percent and Japan's Nikkei .N225 shed 1.05 percent.

The Fed held interest rates steady on Thursday but remained on track to continue gradually raising borrowing costs, pointing to healthy economic prospects that were marred only by a dip in the growth of business investment. central bank has hiked U.S. interest rates three times this year and is widely expected to do so again next month.

The S&P 500 .SPX lost 0.25 percent and the Nasdaq .IXIC shed 0.53 percent on Thursday after the Fed's statement, and energy stocks were the biggest drag on the S&P as U.S. crude oil prices fell. .N

Wall Street shares spiked midweek following the U.S. midterm elections, on a relief rally as the vote did not deviate significantly from investor expectations.

"The Fed meeting outcome and its statement did not produce major surprises, but it managed to reinforce views that a rate hike is coming in December and this tempered equities," said Masahiro Ichikawa, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management in Tokyo.

"The Fed statement came after a steep surge in equities and gave the markets an opportunity to sell into the rally."

In currency markets, the dollar stood tall after advancing against its peers overnight, buoyed by higher Treasury yields and the Fed's intent to continue tightening monetary policy.

The dollar traded at 113.925 yen JPY= after brushing a five-week high of 114.09 overnight.

The euro dipped 0.15 percent to $1.1346 EUR= after shedding 0.55 percent the previous day.

The euro's and yen's declined helped the dollar index against a basket of six major currencies .DXY gain 0.75 percent on Thursday. It last stood little changed at 96.764.

After the Fed statement, the two-year Treasury yield US2YT=RR rose to 2.977 percent, the highest in 10-1/2 years. US/

China's yuan slipped to an eight-day low of 6.9497 per dollar in onshore trade CNY=CFXS , highlighting the diverging monetary policy outlooks for China and the United States.

The U.S.-China trade row also remained in focus.

"Trump's administration will likely maintain a hawkish stance towards China, even though the Republicans lost the House during the midterm elections," wrote Raymond Yeung, ANZ's chief economist for greater China.

Crude oil prices struggled near eight-month lows as investors focused on swelling global crude supply, which is increasing faster than many had expected. O/R

The market took stock of record U.S. crude production and signals from Iraq, Abu Dhabi and Indonesia that output will grow more quickly than expected in 2019.

U.S. crude futures CLc1 were down 0.08 percent at $60.62 per barrel after falling to $60.40 the previous day, the lowest since March 14.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 fell 0.5 percent to $6,122.5 a tonne.

Copper fell 2.5 percent this week, poised for its biggest weekly loss since mid-August, pressured by a stronger greenback, which makes it more costly for non-U.S. buyers of dollar-denominated commodities. MET/L

(Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Sam Holmes)

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.