Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 1.11%, Shanghai Composite up 0.18% Hang Seng up 0.75% ASX up 0.24%
- Commodities : Gold at $4,550.64 (0.13%) Silver at $67.243 (2.21%), Brent Oil at 91.81 (0.15%), WTI Oil at 84.35 (-0.04%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.633, UK 10-year yield at 5.0484, Germany 10-year yield at 3.2625
News & Data:
- (USD) Crude Oil Inventories 4.4M to 0.2M expected
Markets Update:
U.S. stock futures were little changed Wednesday night after Wall Street posted a winning session, supported by a pullback in Treasury yields. S&P 500 futures rose about 0.1%, while Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.3%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 19 points, or 0.04%.
Asian markets traded broadly higher Thursday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.66%, while the Topix gained 0.57%. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.11%, and the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 2.26%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.59%.
The S&P 500 ended a three-session losing streak as longer-term U.S. Treasury yields retreated from multi-year highs. Sentiment improved after the Treasury Department announced plans to more than double buybacks of 10-, 20- and 30-year government debt over the coming months. The move follows a sharp rise in the 30-year Treasury yield, which reached its highest level in nearly two decades earlier this week.
However, Michael Schumacher, former head of macro at Wells Fargo, warned that the relief in bond markets may be temporary. He pointed to the U.S. budget deficit and rising defense spending as factors that could keep long-term yields elevated.
Investors will now focus on weekly U.S. jobless claims, with economists expecting 210,000 initial claims for the week ended Aug. 15. Walmart is also scheduled to report fiscal second-quarter earnings before the opening bell.
Upcoming Events:
- 12:30 PM GMT – USD Unemployment Claims
