Asian Stocks Set for Gains; Dollar Holds Losses: Markets Wrap

On Oct 3, 2021

(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks looked set for a solid start to the week after their U.S. peers climbed Friday as prospects for a pickup in growth outweighed concern over inflation pressures.

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Futures pointed to gains in Japan and Australia, and U.S. contracts edged higher. Mainland Chinese markets are closed through Thursday for the Golden Week holidays. The S&P 500 rose over 1% Friday after promising results for a Covid-19 pill and positive manufacturing data triggered a rally in companies that stand to benefit from an economic reopening.

Treasuries climbed Friday, taking 10-year yields down to 1.46%, and the dollar fell against every G-10 currency. The yen ticked higher in early trading Monday after a record number of flybys by Chinese warplanes close to Taiwan raised tensions in the region.

Asia traders will be watching closely Monday for news on China Evergrande Group, which faces a maturing bond with little wiggle room for payment. Oil traders will monitor comments from OPEC+ which meets virtually amid a spiral higher in crude prices.

As investor fears mount about slowing economic growth, U.S. labor data at the end of the week will also be a key focus for markets. Last month global stocks posted their worst performance since March 2020 amid concern about elevated inflation, supply-chain bottlenecks, a global energy crunch and a slowdown in China.

Elsewhere, Bitcoin traded around $48,000 paring some of its recent gains.

For more market analysis, read our MLIV blog.

Here are some events to watch this week:

OPEC+ meets virtually Monday to review output policy amid a global energy crunch.
Reserve Bank of Australia policy decision Tuesday
Rate decision in New Zealand on Wednesday
Reserve Bank of India monetary policy decision on Friday
The U.S. Labor Department releases unemployment and job creation data Friday
Annual Nobel announcements start on Monday, with the Peace Prize being awarded on Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 7:15 a.m. Tokyo time. The benchmark climbed 1.2% Friday
Nikkei 225 futures rose 0.8%
S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.7%

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.3% Friday
The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1605
The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3560
The Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 110.95 per dollar

Bonds

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude was little changed at $75.91 a barrel
Gold rose 0.1% to $1,763 an ounce