Friday 25th October 2024: Asia Markets Rise Ahead of Japan Election

Global Markets:

•  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.90%, Shanghai Composite up 0.81%, Hang Seng up 1.13% ASX up 0.06%
• Commodities : Gold at $2740.35 (-0.24%), Silver at $33.60 (-0.34%), Brent Oil at $74.64 (0.26%), WTI Oil at $70.69 (0.29%)
• Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.178, UK 10-year yield at 4.238, Germany 10-year yield at 2.257

News & Data:

• (USD) Unemployment Claims  227K vs 243K expected
• (USD) Flash Manufacturing PMI  47.8  vs 47.5 expected
• (USD) Flash Services PMI  55.3  vs 55.0 expected

Markets Update:

Asia-Pacific markets rose on Friday, with investors closely monitoring Japan’s upcoming general election. Japan released its October inflation data for Tokyo, marking the final significant economic report before the election, with the Bank of Japan’s policy meeting scheduled for Oct. 30-31.

Tokyo’s inflation, often seen as a predictor for national trends, showed the city’s headline inflation rate decreased to 1.8% in October from 2.2% in September. Core inflation, which excludes fresh food prices, also fell to 1.8%, down from 2%. This was slightly above the 1.7% core inflation rate forecasted by economists polled by Reuters.

Following the inflation report, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 dropped by 0.85%, and the Topix index was down 0.89%, extending losses to a fifth consecutive day. Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3%, while the smaller-cap Kosdaq slipped 0.85%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.39%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rebounded by 0.65%. Meanwhile, mainland China’s CSI 300 posted a modest increase.

In the U.S., the S&P 500 rallied on Thursday, led by a nearly 22% surge in Tesla shares following strong third-quarter earnings, marking its best performance since 2013. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.76%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.33%, experiencing its first four-day losing streak since June.

Upcoming Events: 

• 12:30 PM GMT – USD Core Retail Sales m/m
• 12:30 PM GMT – USD Retail Sales m/m

The post Friday 25th October 2024: Asia Markets Rise Ahead of Japan Election first appeared on IC Markets | Official Blog.