Asian shares drifted off on Wednesday as anxious investors awaited more earnings reports from corporate America, while the dollar held firm in the wake of robust U.S. retail data and a Brexit-driven dive in the pound.
Asian Shares
- In stock markets trade was generally muted with MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan off 0.3%.
- Japan’s Nikkei eased 0.5% and South Korea 1%, while Chinese blue chips dipped into the red.
- E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 were a fraction firmer.
- Futures are 100% priced for a cut of 25 basis points, and imply a 25% chance of 50 basis points.
- The Dow eased 0.09% on Tuesday, while the S&P 500 lost 0.34% and the Nasdaq 0.43%.
Currency
- The pound was last at $1.2412, a big come-down from its March peaks of $1.3383.
- The dollar was a major beneficiary at 97.351 on a basket of currencies, having risen 0.5% overnight.
- The euro settled at $1.1210, after a loss of 0.4% on Tuesday.
- The dollar held at 108.18 yen.
- The dollar’s gains tarnished gold a little, with the precious metal easing to $1,405.45 per ounce from a high above $1,418 on Tuesday.
Oil Prices
- Oil prices were mixed after falling more than 3% overnight.
- Brent crude futures edged up 14 cents to $64.49.
- U.S. crude dipped 5 cents to $57.57 a barrel.