In Asian Equity Markets stocks fell on Thursday as the upbeat mood that carried the Dow Jones to records a day earlier ran out of steam, replaced by fresh worries about the weakening Chinese property sector as a possible default by China Evergrande looms within days. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.3 percent. Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.5 percent, while the broader Topix lost 1.31 percent to 2,000.81. The Hong Kong-listed shares of debt-ridden China Evergrande lost 12 percent on Thursday when the company resumed trading after a more than two-week suspension.
In Currency Markets commodity currencies fell from multimonth highs on Thursday after their rally on strong raw material prices was sideswiped by sudden selling against the yen, in what many traders described as inevitable profit-taking after a long rally. The Australian dollar turned 0.2 percent lower against the dollar at $0.7501 after reaching a 3 1/2-month high of $0.75465 earlier in the day. The U.S. dollar fell 0.2 percent versus the yen to 114.12 yen. European currencies were firmer, with the euro trading flat at $1.1664, staying close to Tuesday’s three-week peak of $1.1670.
In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 and the Dow climbed on Wednesday with the Dow hitting an intraday record high as investors eyed better than expected third-quarter earnings from U.S. companies. The Dow rose 0.43 percent, to 35,609.34, the S&P 500 gained 0.37 percent, to 4,536.19 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.05 percent, to 15,121.68. Abbott Laboratories rose 3.3 percent after raising its full-year profit forecast on a rebound in COVID-19 test sales. Verizon Communications Inc gained 2.4 percent after it added more postpaid phone subscribers than expected in the third quarter.
In Commodities Markets gold prices jumped on Wednesday, after the U.S. dollar weakened, as worries over rising inflation and supply chain issues boosted the safe-haven metal’s appeal. Spot gold rose 0.9 percent to $1,785.25 per ounce. Elsewhere, platinum rose 1 percent to $1,050.50 per ounce. Palladium fell 1.2 percent to $2,072.71. Silver rose 2.9 percent to $24.34 per ounce, having hit its highest in over one month. Brent crude futures settled at $85.82 a barrel, a gain of 0.9 percent, and the highest since October 2018. November U.S. WTI crude, settled at $83.87, up 1.1 percent.
In European Equity Markets stocks closed at six-week highs on Wednesday as strong results from Nestle boosted food company stocks, helping outweigh losses after a clutch of disappointing earnings including luxury group Kering and chipmaker ASML. The pan-European STOXX 600 index ended 0.3 percent higher, with oil stocks also aiding gains as crude prices recovered slightly. Swiss food giant Nestle gained 2.7 percent on an upbeat sales outlook after strong coffee sales and price hikes pushed organic sales 6.5 percent higher in the third quarter.
In Bond Markets U.S. long-dated Treasury yields rose on Wednesday after a weak auction of 20-year bonds, with the yield curve steepening for a second day and investors paring back aggressive monetary tightening bets from the Federal Reserve. In afternoon trading, the benchmark 10-year note yield was up one basis point at 1.6461 percent. The U.S. 5-year yield, which reflects monetary policy expectations, was last down at 1.1538 percent. U.S 30-year yields also touched one-week peaks of 2.136 percent and were last up 4 basis points at 2.1293 percent.