CURRENCY MARKET WRAP
As of Tue Oct 1st, Singapore Time zone UTC+8
U.S. Dollar Index, +0.30%, 99.40
USDJPY, +0.11%, $108.07
EURUSD, -0.39%, $1.0899
GBPUSD, -0.02%, $1.2290
USDCAD, +0.05%, $1.3243
AUDUSD, -0.16%, $0.6751
NZDUSD, -0.42%, $0.6261
China’s official Manufacturing PMI did improve to 49.8 in September from 49.5 August, but the reading below 50.0 indicated the sector remained in contraction territory. The Caixin/Markit factory PMI came in at 51.4 for September, above expectations of 50.2 by analysts in a Reuters poll. The Chicago PMI for September, meanwhile, fell back into contraction territory with a reading of 47.1 (consensus 50.8).
Growth concerns weren’t evident in the stock market, though, as it pushed higher following the release of the Chicago PMI. U.S. Treasuries did see some slight buying interest after the report, which helped bring yields down to their unchanged marks in a relatively tight-ranged session.
The 2-yr yield and the 10-yr yield finished unchanged at 1.62% and 1.68%, respectively. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.3% to 99.40. Gold futures, which had rallied alongside a stronger dollar this quarter, declined 2.2% (-$33.10) to $1473.30/ozt.
STOCK MARKET WRAP
S&P500, +0.50%, 2,976.73
Nasdaq, +0.75%, 7,999.34
Nikkei Futures, +0.28%, 21,807.5
The S&P 500 (+0.5%), Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.4%), and Nasdaq Composite (+0.75%) posted respectable gains, lifted by shares of Apple (AAPL 223.97, +5.15, +2.4%) after JP Morgan raised its price target to $265 from $243. The Russell 2000 increased 0.2%.
The S&P 500 utilities sector (+0.1%) struggled to match the benchmark index, while the financials (-0.1%) and energy (-0.8%) sectors finished in negative territory. Another decline in oil prices ($54.12/bbl, -1.78, -3.2%) weighed on the oil-sensitive energy stocks, as Saudi Arabia reportedly returned to normal oil output and Chinese data continued to show weakness in the country’s manufacturing sector.’