Asian shares edged up on Monday, catching some of Wall Street’s momentum after surprisingly strong U.S. jobs data, although regional gains were capped by concerns about China’s economic slowdown due to the prolonged Sino-U.S. trade war.
Asian Shares
- Japan’s benchmark Nikkei (N225) added 0.33%.
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (MIAPJ0000PUS) gained 0.27%.
- China’s Shanghai Composite stood flat and so did Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (HSI).
- Wall Street rose to near record highs on Friday on the strong jobs data and some signs of optimism about the U.S.-China trade talks, with the benchmark S&P 500 (SPX) closing within 0.2% of its peak set in late November.
Bonds
U.S. Treasury yields climbed on the strong employment report, with benchmark 10-year notes rising to 1.843% (US10YT=RR).
Currency Markets
- In the currency market, the dollar maintained a firm tone on Monday, with the dollar index against a basket of major currencies (=USD) standing at 97.648.
- The euro changing hands at $1.1061 (EUR=), both little changed on the day.
- Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was last traded at 108.59 yen flat on the day.
- Elsewhere, the British pound rose to as high as $1.3180 its highest in seven months.
Oil Prices
- Oil prices retreated but hovered near recent peaks after OPEC and its allies agreed to deepen output cuts by 500,000 barrels per day in early 2020.
- U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude (CLc1) slipped 0.4% to $58.94 per barrel, still not far from Friday’s 2-1/2-month high of $59.85 per barrel, while Brent futures (LCOc1) were down 0.3% at $64.21 per barrel.
