Asian stocks on hold for Lunar New Year, bitcoin eyes record highs

TOKYO/NEW YORK - Asian shares hovered just below a record high on Friday as mixed US economic data caused some investors to show restraint after a global stock market rally pushed many bourses to dizzying heights.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.05 percent, trading just shy of an all-time high reached in the previous session. Australian stocks lost 0.63 percent. Shares in Tokyo fell 0.2 percent, pulling back from 30-year highs.

Futures for the S&P 500 declined 0.12 percent. Euro Stoxx 50 futures were up 0.03 percent, German DAX futures slipped 0.14 percent, and FTSE futures eased 0.13 percent, pointing to a subdued start to European trading.

Markets in Greater China and most of Southeast Asia are closed on Friday for the Lunar New Year holiday. China’s stock and bond markets, foreign exchange and commodity futures markets are closed through Feb. 17 for the holiday.

Bitcoin surged to a new record high after BNY Mellon said it would offer custodian services for cryptocurrencies. The dollar headed for a weekly loss, stung by bitcoin’s assent and disappointing U.S. economic data.

Trading in the United States and Europe on Thursday did not move prices enough to provide much direction, said Tom Piotrowski, a market analyst at CommSec in Sydney.

“We didn’t get much of a lead-in from the northern hemisphere,” Piotrowski said. “Markets are in a bit of a holding pattern waiting for the next catalyst and it is just a question of whether that catalyst is going to be a positive one or a negative one.”

World stock markets were holding close to record highs on Thursday as investors weighed some tepid economic data against increasing vaccinations against COVID-19 and the prospect that more government spending and continued cheap money from central banks will drive higher growth and, eventually, inflation.

The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 49 countries, fell 0.03 percent on Friday, also pulling back from a record high.

On Wall Street, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 eked out gains of 0.4 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.02 percent.

Prices held near records as investors bet on more government spending, although enthusiasm was tempered when U.S. President Joe Biden said that China was poised to “eat our lunch,” raising fears of renewed strain on Sino-U.S. ties.

U.S. weekly unemployment claims fell less than expected and core consumer prices rose at a slower pace, which caused some traders to temper the optimism about the economic outlook.

Bitcoin reached a record high of $49,000 before erasing gains.

BNY Mellon’s announcement that it will help clients hold, transfer and issue digital assets came just days after Elon Musk’s Tesla revealed it had bought $1.5 billion worth of the cryptocurrency and would accept it as a form of payment for its cars.

Spot gold fell 0.17 percent to $1,822.21 per ounce. U.S. gold futures fell 0.14 percent to $1,829.50. Gold prices are still on track for their best week in three amid broad dollar selling.

The dollar index edged up by 0.05 percent on Friday but was still on course for a 0.6 percent weekly decline.

Soft demand at an auction of $27 billion of new 30-year Treasuries on Thursday rattled bond investors.

The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries rose to 1.1599 percent. The 30-year yield initially rose but then fell back to 1.9398 percent.

Brent crude fell 0.57 percent to $60.79 a barrel, having dropped half a percent the previous session. U.S. oil fell 0.64 percent to $57.88 a barrel, after falling by 0.8 percent on Thursday.

OPEC cut its demand forecast and the International Energy Agency said the market was still oversupplied, which cast a gloom over energy markets.

-reuters-

Asian stocks at 2-week high as Trump returns to White House

SINGAPORE - Asian stock markets advanced to a two-week high on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump was discharged from hospital following treatment for COVID-19 and as prospects for a fresh U.S. stimulus package appeared to brighten.

Bonds and the dollar nursed losses amid the improving risk appetite, while oil extended gains.

Trump returned to the White House on Monday after a three-night hospital stay and said he felt "real good", though one of his doctors cautioned that he may not be out of the woods yet. 

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.71 percent to a two week-high, led by Hong Kong climbing 0.88 percent. Japan's Nikkei also added 0.41 percent.

Separately, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke by phone for about an hour and were preparing to talk again Tuesday, continuing their work towards a deal on coronavirus relief spending. 

As well as Trump's health, "there is also some market attention on whether the U.S. Congress will pass the extra stimulus bill," said Tai Hui, Chief Asia Market Strategist, J.P. Morgan Asset Management

"If we do see some form of stimulus coming through, I think the market will take it in a positive light as much of the important support from the previous round has expired," he said.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.08 percent after the best daily gain on the S&P 500 index in a month overnight. Oil held sharp overnight gains. 

Australia's ASX 200 was more subdued, up 0.17 percent, ahead of a central bank meeting at 0330 GMT and the government's budget later in the day.

China's markets remain closed for a holiday.

Asian markets on Monday unwound most of a Friday selloff in the wake of Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis. That improvement also caused Wall Street to rally sharply overnight with energy, tech and healthcare stocks leading. The Dow rose 1.7 percent, the S&P 500 1.8 percent and the Nasdaq 2.3 percent. 

Bond markets also joined in, with the safe-haven asset being sold - especially at the long end - in line with the optimistic mood. The yield on U.S. 30-year government bonds rose 10 basis points to a four month high of 1.5930 percent, before easing slightly. 

Benchmark 10-year yields hit a more than five-week high, and held just shy of that in Asian morning trading at 0.7634 percent.

"Improved near-term stimulus prospects and then potentially bigger deficits under a Biden presidency that has the benefit of clean sweep, are behind the yield gains here," said Ray Attrill, head of FX strategy at National Australia Bank in Sydney.

In currency markets, the dollar was under pressure on other majors apart from the yen, since higher yields can often draw flows from Japan. 

The yen hovered at 105.7 per dollar, while the risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars edged ahead, with the Aussie last up 0.13 percent at $0.7191.

Oil jumped more than 5 percent overnight and held there in Asia, supported by optimism surrounding Trump's health and a supply squeeze as a strike shut six Norwegian offshore oil and gas fields. 

The strike will cut Norway's total output capacity by just over 330,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, or about 8% of total production, according to the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association (NOG). 

U.S. crude last stood at $39.27 up 0.13 percent and, Brent crude rose 0.2 percent to $41.37. Gold was steady at $1,912 an ounce.

-reuters-