NOTABLE MOVES
As of Sat, Mar 16, Singapore Time zone UTC+8
USDJPY, -0.22%, $111.47
EURUSD, +0.19%, $1.1329
GBPUSD, +0.31%, $1.3298
USDCAD, -0.01%, $1.3334
AUDUSD, +0.36%, $0.7090
NZDUSD, +0.32%, $0.6845
S&P500, +0.50%, 2,822.48
Nasdaq, +0.88%, 7,306.99
Nikkei Futures, +0.57%, 21,240.0
CURRENCY MARKET WRAP
- Industrial production increased 0.1% in February (consensus +0.4%). The capacity utilization rate dipped to 78.2% (consensus 78.5%). The preliminary March reading for the University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment at 97.8 (consensus 95.5). The key takeaway from the report is thatreal income expectations, which account for inflation, increased in households across lower, middle, and upper incomes. That favorable outlook is supportive for consumer spending activity.
- U.S. Treasuries closed the session on a higher note, pushing yields lower across the curve. The 2-yr yield declined one basis point to 2.44%, and the 10-yr yield declined four basis points to 2.59%. The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.2% to 96.60. WTI crude lost 0.3% to $58.39/bbl.
- BOJ maintained a pledge to guide short-term interest rates at -0.1% and 10-year government bond yields around zero percent. The widely expected decision was made by a 7-2 vote. In a nod to increased risks, the BOJ cut its assessment on overseas economies to say they are showing signs of slowdown. It also revised down its view on exports and output. The central bank also stuck to its view Japan’s economy is expanding moderately, but added a phrase that “exports and output have been affected by slowing overseas growth.”In January, it said only that the economy was expanding moderately.
STOCK MARKET WRAP
- The S&P 500 gained 0.5% on this quadruple-witching expiration Friday, supported by reported progress in U.S.-China trade talks and the outperformance of semiconductor stocks. Friday’s advance capped an impressive 2.9% weekly gain in the benchmark index and established a new closing high for 2019. The S&P 500 information technology sector (+1.2%) was the session’s leader, followed by the consumer discretionary sector (+0.7%). Conversely, the real estate (-0.4%), industrials (-0.3%), and energy (-0.1%) sectors were the lone groups to finish with losses.
- Stocks began the session on a higher note, helped by a Chinese report that the U.S. and China have made “concrete progress” in talks about the text of a trade agreement. Separately, talk that China is considering using monetary tools to further help the economy, and Japan explicitly saying it will keep interest rates low for an extended period, aided investor sentiment.
- Shares of Boeing (BA 378.99, +5.69, +1.5%) found some reprieve after AFP News Agency tweeted Boeing is going to roll out a software upgrade for its 737 MAX in ten days. Boeing responded, telling Reuters that its timeline for the software update has not changed and is expected to be rolled out in the coming weeks. On the other hand, Facebook (FB 165.98, -4.19, -2.5%), Adobe Systems (ADBE 257.09, -10.60, -4.0%), and Tesla (TSLA 275.43, -14.53, -5.0%) were some notable laggards Friday..