Talking Points:
- Thursday proved a mixed session for Asian stocks
- The Nikkei 225 added 2% at one point but it couldn’t keep its gains
- US President Donald Trump was feted in China, hoped for more from Beijing to counter Pyongyang
See what the foreign exchange trading community makes of the currencies you like, and those you don’t, with the DailyFX Sentiment Page.
Asian stocks were mixed Thursday with the Nikkei erasing early gains. As ever investors had one eye on the US and another on more local matters which include US President Donald Trump’s regional tour, now in China.
The US President sounded more conciliatory than he often does, but hoped for more help from Beijing in containing North Korea. Chinese leader Xi Jinping for his part said that sanctions against Pyongyang would be strictly applied.
The Nikkei 225 initially continued its astonishing bull run. The index climbed above the 23,0000 mark for gains of 2% at one point. However it faded into the close to end down 0.2%. Australia’s ASX 200 did better, adding 0.5%. There was reportedly some profit taking in energy names but materials sector gains offset this. The Shanghai Composite was up by similar amount with the Hang Seng down a little.
In the foreign-exchange space, the US Dollar initially held firm but it slipped against the Japanese Yen and others late session. The New Zealand Dollar gained as the country’s Reserve Bank kept interest rates on hold at their record low but came out with a statement which struck investors as more hawkish than the last one. The Australian Dollar took an early knock on disappointing home-loan numbers and didn’t claw back much on news that China’s inflation ran ahead of expectations in October.
Neither gold prices or crude oil prices moved much in the Asia as there was a dearth of news likely to affect either.
Still to come Thursday are the European Commission’s economic bulletin and forecasts, then initial and continuing jobless-claims data out of the US. Two European Central Bank Executive Board members will be behind the mic as the day progresses. Benoit Coeure will speak first, in Lyon, and Yves Mersch is up later in Vienna. Canada’s new house price index is also due
--- Written by David Cottle, DailyFX Research
Contact and follow David on Twitter: @DavidCottleFX
