In Asian Equity Markets Japan’s Nikkei share average ended lower on Thursday, hit by declines in automakers and electronic component makers as the strong yen turned investor appetite. The Nikkei shed 0.3 percent to 23,710.43. Toyota Motor Corp fell 1 percent and Honda Motor Co declined 1.9 percent. Banks continued to advance, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group rising 0.6 percent and Mizuho Financial Group gaining 0.5 percent. Kyocera Corp fell 1.4 percent, Alps Electric declined 1.5 percent and Taiyo Yuden was down 1.4 percent. Bitcoin-related stocks also fell after South Korea’s justice minister said that the government is preparing a bill to ban cryptocurrency trading. Remixpoint Inc fell 2.6 percent. Virtual currency trading company Remixpoint Inc fell 2.6 percent.

In Currency Markets the US dollar nursed its losses against the yen on Thursday, having suffered its biggest one-day decline in nearly eight months following a report that China was ready to slow or halt its purchases of U.S. Treasuries. The dollar regained some ground on Thursday, edging up 0.1 percent to 111.54 yen. The euro held steady at $1.1949, having retreated from Wednesday’s intraday high of $1.20185. The Canadian dollar nursed its losses, having slipped on Wednesday as worries of a U.S. NAFTA withdrawal tempered bets that the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates next week. The Canadian dollar held steady at C$1.2553 per U.S. dollar. On Wednesday it slid 0.7 percent and fell to as low as C$1.2583, the loonie’s lowest level since late December.

In Commodities Markets oil inched away from three-year highs on Thursday on signs that a 13-percent rally since early December may have run its course, although a surprise decline in U.S. production and lower crude inventories offered prices some support. U.S. production fell 290,000 barrels per day to 9.5 million bpd, the EIA said, foiling expectations of U.S. output breaking through 10 million bpd. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $63.50, 7 cents below their last settlement, but still close to a December-2014 high of $63.67 per barrel reached the previous day. Brent crude futures were at $69.10 a barrel, 10 cents below their last finish, albeit also still close to the previous day’s peak of $69.37 a barrel – the highest level since an intra-day spike in May 2015.

In US Equity Markets the three major U.S. stock indexes ended marginally lower on Wednesday after a choppy trading session as investors worried that China would slow U.S. government bond purchases and that U.S. President Donald Trump would end a key trade agreement. The S&P 500 lost 0.10 percent, to 2,748.2 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.15 percent, to 7,153.5. The S&P financial index was the best performer among the S&P 500’s 11 major sectors with a 0.9 percent rise, helped by gains in Berkshire Hathaway, JP Morgan and Wells Fargo. Banks and insurance companies often rise with bond yields as investors expect a profit boost from higher interest rates. Berkshire Hathaway rose 1.2 percent after the conglomerate promoted two top executives, cementing their status as the most likely successors to Warren Buffett.

In Bond Markets strong demand at a $20 billion U.S. 10-year government note sale on Wednesday stabilized a bond market that was rattled by a Bloomberg report that said China may pare or stop buying Treasuries because it sees them as unattractive amid rising U.S.-China trade tension. The latest auction, however, did not quell worries of a renewed selloff that already pushed 10-year yields near 2.60 percent, which were their highest since March earlier Wednesday. The 10-year yield closed at 2.55 percent, unchanged for the day. The Bank of Japan maintained the amount of its bond purchases on Thursday, after earlier this week cut its buying of longer-dated debt that fanned worries the central bank may be moving to turn off its stimulus. The 10-year JGB yield ticked down 1.0 basis point to 0.07.

Today’s inflection points

• 11:00 GMT +1 EUR Industrial production
• 14:30 GMT +1 USD Initial jobless claims
• 14:30 GMT +1 USD PPI
• 14:30 GMT +1 USD PPI core
• 21:30 GMT +1 USD Fed’s Dudley (voter, neutral) speaks