Newscasts - Asia Markets Briefing: Stasis sets in ahead of U.S. election

Sanrio Co

05/11/2024 09:07

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Source: 'Reuters - Business videos'

Description: An uneasy calm settled over currencies and bonds on Tuesday,
though there were signs of life in the equity markets. Some positive signals
for the Chinese economy gave Shanghai stocks a boost on a day dominated by
anticipation of the U.S. election.
Short Link: https://refini.tv/3YCnn6c

Video Transcript:

Stasis sets in ahead of the US election with China the notable exception.
Welcome to Asia Markets Briefing. I'm Thomas Warner. An uneasy calm settled
over currencies and bonds on Tuesday. Uncertainty over the outcome of the
election means that many investors are now happy to sit back and wait to see
whether it will be Kamala Harris or Donald Trump who wins the keys to the
White House. But there were signs of life in the equity markets. The Nikkei
returned from Japan’s Culture Day holiday on the front foot, up more than
1% on some positive corporate earnings. Electronics-giant TDK and Hello
Kitty-owner Sanrio, both raised their full year forecasts on Tuesday. But it
was Shanghai that made the biggest gains, boosted by some positive signals
from the world's second largest economy. The Caixin PMI survey showed that
activity in China's service sector grew at its fastest pace in three months in
October, helped along by stimulus measures from Beijing. The expansionary
reading of 52 points tallied with an official PMI released last week. The
Standing Council of the People's National Congress announced a wide-ranging
package of stimulus measures back in September, and it's meeting again this
week to consider what more it can do. Premier Li Qiang told the annual China
International Export Expo on Tuesday, that the country needs to be even more
open to foreign trade. He wants to upgrade the country's free trade zones and
strike new investment agreements with other partners. Weak domestic demand
means that China's imports have slowed sharply, a situation that's been
exacerbated by trade friction with the US and with Europe. Back in Japan,
earning seasons in full swing, Nintendo says that slow sales of its Switch
device mean that it's cutting its full year profit forecast by around 10%. The
Switch has sold fewer than five million units so far this year, the lowest
since its launch in 2017, but it is still on track to surpass the DS as
Nintendo's best-ever selling console. Looking ahead now, and Toyota Motor is
expected to post its first profit drop in two years when it reports on
Wednesday. It's still likely to deliver an almost $8 billion profit for the
quarter. Like most legacy car makers, the world's number ones been hit by
cooling demand for EVs in virtually every market except China. But its focus
on internal combustion and hybrid models means that it's holding up better
than most of its rivals. Honda is due to report on Wednesday as well. On the
economic side, in Japan, there is a final PMI reading from the au Jibun Bank,
while in India, HSBC's services PMI has seen rebounding from a 10-month low.
The forecast of 58.3 is just above September's at 57.7. And finally, the
pre-election status in FX and fixed income even extended into commodities on
Tuesday. Oil prices were virtually flat following gains on Monday, with Ice
Brent trading at around $75.00 a barrel and at around $2730.00 an ounce, Gold
was up just 0.03%. And that's it from your Asia Markets Briefing