Asian shares meander after S&P 500 sets another record

BANGKOK / WAM

Asian shares were mixed on Thursday after US stocks broke out of a three-day lull to close at a record, Associated Press reported. Oil prices advanced, while US futures edged lower.
The dollar remained strong against the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, a trend that has unsettled regulators in both Tokyo and Beijing. The dollar rose to 151.37 yen from 151.30 yen. The euro slipped to US$1.0822 from US$1.0828. On March 27, the yen dipped to its lowest level since 1990, and Japanese officials reiterated their desire for stability in exchange rates. “As the yen continues to show vulnerability, market participants will be vigilant for any hints of possible intervention in the currency market by Japanese policymakers,” Anderson Alves of ActivTrades said in a commentary. The dollar bought 7.2286 yuan. It also has weakened against the dollar in recent weeks.
“We continue to think that policymakers in China and Japan will do enough to keep their currencies from weakening much further, but the risk of a break lower in one, or both, is increasing,” Jonas Goltermann of Capital Economics said in a report. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 lost 1.2 percent to 40,283.44. The Kospi in Seoul also fell, edging 0.1 percent lower to 2,751.22.
Chinese markets recouped losses from the day before. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.1 percent to 16,579.99, while the Shanghai Composite advanced 1.2 percent to 3,029.01.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 jumped 0.9 percent to 7,887.00. Taiwan’s Taiex was little changed.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 climbed 0.9 percent to a record 5,248.49 in its first gain since setting its last all-time high on March 21. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.2 percent to 39,760.08, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.5 percent to 16,399.52. Both finished a bit shy of their own records.
This week’s highlight for markets may arrive Friday, when the US government releases the latest monthly update on spending by US consumers. It will include the measure of inflation that the Federal Reserve prefers to use as it sets interest rates. Both the US bond and stock markets will be closed for Good Friday. That could cause some anticipatory trades to bunch up on Thursday, the last trading day of the year’s first quarter.
The S&P 500 is on track for a fifth straight winning month and has been roaring higher since late October. The US economy has remained remarkably resilient despite high interest rates meant to get inflation under control. Plus, the Federal Reserve looks set to start lowering interest rates this year because inflation has cooled from its peak.
But critics say a broader range of companies will need to deliver strong profit growth to justify the big moves in prices. Progress on bringing inflation down has also become bumpier recently, with reports this year coming in hotter than expected. Still, the broad expectation among traders is for the Federal Reserve to begin cutting its main interest rate in June.
Stocks generally tend to do the best when more than half the world’s central banks are easing interest rates, according to Ned Davis Research. The world is not there yet, but several central banks have already begun cutting recently, like Switzerland’s, and it could happen later this year.
In other trading, US benchmark crude oil gained 38 cents to US$81.73 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, added 33 cents to US$85.74 per barrel.