Asian Market Update: AUD rebounds as Australia trade deficit narrows; USD longs take profits
***Economic Data***
- (AU) AUSTRALIA AUG TRADE BALANCE (A$): -787M V -800ME (5th consecutive month of deficit)
- (AU) AUSTRALIA AUG BUILDING APPROVALS M/M: 3.0% (3-month high) V 1.0%E; Y/Y:14.5% V 12.7%E
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND SEPT ANZ COMMODITY PRICE M/M: -1.3% (7th consecutive decline) V -3.3% PRIOR
- (JP) JAPAN LOANS & DISCOUNTS CORP Y/Y: 2.1% V 2.0% PRIOR
- (JP) JAPAN SEPT MONETARY BASE Y/Y: 35.3% V 40.5% PRIOR; MONETARY BASE END OF PERIOD: ¥252.6T V ¥243.5T PRIOR
***Index Snapshot (as of 02:30 GMT)***
- Nikkei225 -1.7%, S&P/ASX -0.7%, Kospi-1.0 %, Shanghai Composite closed, Hang Seng closed, Dec S&P500 flat at 1,940
***Commodities/Fixed Income***
- Dec gold +0.2% at $1,217/oz, Nov crude oil +0.1% at $90.82/brl, Dec copper +0.2% at $3.03/lb
- SLV: iShares Silver Trust ETF daily holdings rise to 10,888 tonnes from 10,762 tonnes prior; multi-year high
- GLD: SPDR Gold Trust ETF daily holdings fall 1.2 tonnes to 769.9 tonnes; Lowest level since Dec 2008
- JGB: (JP) Japan MoF sells ¥2.20T in 0.5% (0.5% prior) 10-yr notes; Avg Yield: 0.516% v 0.522% prior; bid-to-cover: 3.48x v 3.58x prior
- (JP) Japan investors bought net ¥184.6B in foreign bonds v bought ¥770.5B in prior week; Foreign investors sold net ¥41.6B in Japan stocks v bought ¥294.0B in prior week
***Market Focal Points/Key Themes/FX***
- Return of FX market volatility has taken the greenback on a wild ride in the early part of the Asian session, as overextended USD-long positioning swung the other way. Soft US Manufacturing ISM and a growing sense of disinflation produced some short-term repricing of the Fed intentions, with fixed income rallying sharply in the past 24 hours across the globe and curve. Traders are also increasingly cautious ahead of the upcoming ECB decision, the Hong Kong Occupy Central deadline for CY Leung to step down, and the non-farm payrolls on Friday, not to mention the broader economic headwinds from US ebola scare. AUD/USD was up nearly 100pips from the lows above $0.88, in part helped by a smaller than expected trade deficit and a rise in building approvals. NZD/USD is particularly volatile with a 150pip jump above $0.7920, while USD/JPY is down 50pips around ¥108.60, sending Nikkei225 down nearly 2%. Tracking USD weakness, Gold was up as much as $10 above $1,224.
- Australia Trade Balance narrowed from a deficit of A$1.36B to A$787M. Among notable components, exports to China rose nearly 10% to A$8.3B, while shipments of iron ore and coal were also up 20% and 5.6%. RBA's Edey said the central bank is considering steps to tighten mortgage lending standards, but also noted the caps on loan-to-value ratios (as implemented by RBNZ) were not likely. Edey continued to push for a govt-driven increase in housing supply to resolve the threat of a property market bubble, noting "we can not improve housing affordability simply by adding to demand."
- Hong Kong-related uncertainty remains elevated, with China state media announcing the govt will "not give an inch" of compromise over the Occupy Central protest. Recall that some of the movement leaders have demanded for CY Leung to announce resignation by Thursday evening (local time), though the "or else" component of the "ultimatum" were not clear.
***Equities***
US markets:
- RLD: Holder Starboard proposes acquisition of RLD at $12/shr in cash, increases stake to 9.9% from 9.1% - 13D/A filing; +25.1% afterhours
- DTV: NFL and DIRECTV extend NFL SUNDAY TICKET in new multi-year deal; Specific terms of the agreement were not disclosed; +1.5% afterhours
- ARG: To increase argon prices 15%; +1.3% afterhours
- AGU: Guides Q3 $0.45-0.55 v $0.70e, Provides Update on H2; -3.6% afterhours
Notable movers by sector:
- Consumer discretionary: Wofit.com Holdings WTF.AU +6.6% (ACCC will not oppose Expedia acquisition); Lawson Inc 2651.JP -1.0% (To acquire stake in convenience store operator Poplar); Hokuetsu Kishu Paper 3865.JP -1.1% (press report on H1 results, to miss forecast)
- Technology: Samsung Electronics 005930.KR -0.8% (speculation to halt LED lighting business); Inotera Memories 3474.TW +3.2% (reports Samsung may not increase DRAM production)
- Industrials: Honda Motor 7267.JP -3.6% (cuts domestic production on recalls, tax increase)
- Healthcare: Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical 4530.JP -1.5% (H1 guidance)
- Energy: Beach Energy BPT.AU -1.8% (Chevron may drop JV)