Finance Friday

Market Data

Local

Global

*Data as of 6pm WAT

Market News

Local

Global

Weekly Investment Watchlist

Market Commentary

Asia and Australia

• Asian equities ended mixed Friday in a strong catalyst-based trading day. Nikkei and Topix closed lower on BOJ YCC news but rallied sharply in the final hour of trading and came close to erasing losses at one point.

• Greater China indices regained strong upward momentum on signals Beijing is following through with pledges to help the property sector.

• Tokyo core CPI rose 3.0% y/y in July, compared with the consensus of 2.9%, and follows 3.2% in the previous month.

• China asks internet giants to showcase investments in consumer, telecom, and media companies

• Australia's June retail sales shrank 0.8% m/m in June compared to the consensus for a flat result and May's upwardly revised 0.8% increase - adds to the case for an RBA pause.

Europe, Middle East, Africa

• European equity markets are mostly lower. UK’s FTSE 100 bucks trend on positive earnings to hit nine-week high. Banks leading in EU trade as earnings supersede ECB's move to eliminate remuneration on minimum reserves, as the impact is seen as limited. Chemicals outperform; Technology, Retail, and Real Estate lag.

• Mixed takeaways from yesterday's ECB policy decision, which saw a 25-bp rate increase to take the deposit rate to 3.75% and tweak in rate guidance. The statement said rates are to be set at sufficiently restrictive levels, rather than brought to sufficiently restrictive levels, which opens the possibility of a pause.

• The publication of preliminary Q2 GDP updates from leading Eurozone economies showed growth remains underpinned despite weakness in leading indicators

• German GDP stagnated in Q2 with a 0.0% reading versus consensus for 0.1% expansion and prior 0.1% contraction revised from the 0.3% fall initially reported.

• French Q2 GDP expanded 0.5% versus consensus for 0.1% expansion and prior 0.1% increase, with foreign trade contributing positively and a bounce back in exports

• Spanish GDP expanded 0.4% in Q2, in line with consensus and compared with the prior 0.5% increase revised from 0.6%. Spanish economy also benefited from stronger exports and tourism.

• Austrian, one of the smallest euro area economies, saw growth contract by 0.4% due to a slowdown in construction and industry

The Americas

• A sweeping overhaul of bank capital rules proposed by regulators includes changes to requirements for residential mortgages, making them more stringent. Banks will need to set aside higher levels of capital for riskier mortgages and first-time buyers. The adjustments go beyond international standards — the Basel III framework — by about 20 percentage points.

• Intel reports Q2 EPS $0.13 ex-items vs FactSet ($0.04); Revenue $12.95B vs FactSet $12.12B

• T-Mobile US exceeds Q2 profit estimates and raises its subscriber forecast for the year

• Ford delivers Q2 beat and boosts guidance, but sees more losses in EV unit

• Cash parked at money market funds hit a fresh all-time high after the latest Fed rate hike reaching $5.49 trillion

The Week Ahead:

• Monday:

• Tuesday:

  • US Consumer confidence came in at 117; est: 112 (2-year high).

  • House Price Index

• Wednesday:

  • US Federal Reserve raises the benchmark rate to .25bps and is now at a 22-year high.

  • US new home sales come in at 697k; est: 725k

• Thursday:

  • US weekly jobless claims come in at 221k; est: 235k.

  • European Central Bank (ECB) raises its benchmark rate to .25bps.

  • US Advanced Q2 GDP comes in at 2.4%; est: 1.8%

• Friday:

  • Core PCE Price Index YoY

Investment Tip of The Day

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Disclaimer: The information contained in this report is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice. The information is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed.