Shares hold near record high with Powell in focus, dollar in the doldrums
Updates at 0835 GMT
By Alun John and Stella Qiu
LONDON/SYDNEY, Aug 23 (Reuters) -World shares steadied on Friday, sitting just 1% shy of all-time highs, while the dollar languished around one-year lows ahead of a speech by the world's most powerful central banker which markets will peruse for guidance on the shape of U.S. rate cuts.
Europe's broad Stoxx 600 index .STOXX rose 0.14% in early trading, Asian shares outside Japan nudged down 0.1%, but Japan's Nikkei .N225 gained 0.4% as investors digested inflation data and remarks from Bank of Japan governor Kazuo Ueda flagging a willingness to raise interest rates if the economy and inflation turn out as forecast.
That left MSCI's all country world index .MIWD00000PUS up a whisker, and with early August's turmoil in the rear view mirror, it is now trading around 1% off its mid July all time peak. S&P500 futures .SPX rose 0.3%.
The main event of the week is still to come however: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's keynote speech to the Kansas City Fed's annual Jackson Hole Research conference, which comes as U.S. economic data gives the Federal Reserve the green light to cut interest rates.
Markets are fully priced for a 25 bp rate cut in September and see a cut at each of the Fed's three remaining meetings this year, and for one to be a larger 50 bp move.
The speech will be watched carefully to see whether it challenges or underscores such pricing, though Powell's opportunities to give too much of a surprise seem limited.
"As any decision that deviates from market pricing will rest on as yet unknown data, it is hard to see how Powell can commit to much beyond some easing of some sort in September, and even then, only barring data accidents," said Rob Carnell, regional head of research, Asia-Pacific, at ING.
Expectations that rate cuts are coming have kept U.S. Treasury prices supported and not giving back their safe-haven gains from early August.
The benchmark 10 year Treasury yield was flat at 3.857% - it has only been above 4% for a very brief period in August, after spending almost all of 2024 there. US10YT=RR
Its German equivalent was also steady at 2.25%. DE10YT=RR GVD/EUR
The low U.S. yields have hurt the dollar, which has lost ground on almost all major peers in August. FRX/
The euro EUR=EBS was last at $1.1119, steady on the day and just off a 13 month peak hit earlier this week, and sterling GBP=D3 was up 0.2% at $1.312, struggling to push through its July 2023 level, which would take it to its highest in well over two years. GBP/
The Japanese yen gained with the dollar down 0.3% at 145.85 JPY=EBS after Bank of Japan Kazuo Ueda flagged an willingness to raise interest rates if the economy and inflation turn out as forecast.
"The yen buying today is understandable given Governor Ueda showed very little sign of a shift in the views and plans of the BoJ following the financial market turmoil earlier this month," said Derek Halpenny, head of research global markets EMEA at MUFG in a note to clients.
Data out early in the day showed Japan's core inflation accelerated for a third straight month, but a slowdown in demand-drive price gains suggest no urgency for any immediate rate hikes.
Commodities looked set to end the week lower.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 were up 0.5% at $77.59 a barrel, although they are down more than 3% for the week as swelling U.S. crude stocks and a weakening demand outlook in China have raised pessimism. O/R
Gold prices XAU= are up 0.5% to $2,496.6 an ounce, recharging towards its record high of $2,531.6 hit just on Tuesday.
Asia stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Asia-Pacific valuations https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dr2BQA
Reporting by Stella Qiu in Sydney and Alun John in London
Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Kim Coghill
To read Reuters Markets and Finance news, click on https://www.reuters.com/finance/markets For the state of play of Asian stock markets please click on: 0#.INDEXA
Relaterade tillgångar
Senaste nytt
Ansvarsfriskrivning: XM Group-enheter tillhandahåller sin tjänst enbart för exekvering och tillgången till vår onlinehandelsplattform, som innebär att en person kan se och/eller använda tillgängligt innehåll på eller via webbplatsen, påverkar eller utökar inte detta, vilket inte heller varit avsikten. Denna tillgång och användning omfattas alltid av i) villkor, ii) riskvarningar och iii) fullständig ansvarsfriskrivning. Detta innehåll tillhandahålls därför uteslutande som allmän information. Var framför allt medveten om att innehållet på vår onlinehandelsplattform varken utgör en uppmaning eller ett erbjudande om att ingå några transaktioner på de finansiella marknaderna. Handel på alla finansiella marknader involverar en betydande risk för ditt kapital.
Allt material som publiceras på denna sida är enbart avsett för utbildnings- eller informationssyften och innehåller inte – och ska inte heller anses innehålla – rådgivning och rekommendationer om finansiella frågor, investeringsskatt eller handel, dokumentation av våra handelskurser eller ett erbjudande om, eller en uppmaning till, en transaktion i finansiella instrument eller oönskade finansiella erbjudanden som är riktade till dig.
Tredjepartsinnehåll, liksom innehåll framtaget av XM såsom synpunkter, nyheter, forskningsrön, analyser, kurser, andra uppgifter eller länkar till tredjepartssajter som återfinns på denna webbplats, tillhandahålls i befintligt skick, som allmän marknadskommentar, och utgör ingen investeringsrådgivning. I den mån som något innehåll tolkas som investeringsforskning måste det noteras och accepteras att innehållet varken har varit avsett som oberoende investeringsforskning eller har utarbetats i enlighet med de rättsliga kraven för att främja ett sådant syfte, och därför är att betrakta som marknadskommunikation enligt tillämpliga lagar och föreskrifter. Se till så att du har läst och förstått vårt meddelande om icke-oberoende investeringsforskning och riskvarning om ovannämnda information, som finns här.