Asian markets were mostly lower Friday on disappointment about the European Central Bank’s decision to keep policy unchang.
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KEEPING SCORE: In Europe, France’s CAC 40 fell 0.4 percent to 4,517 while Germany’s DAX slipped 0.5 percent to 10,625. The stock was the biggest decliner in the S&P 500 index, shedding $13.01 to $70.52.
DEAL-MAKING: Investors got a dash of tech sector deal news. The pact calls for HP Enterprise to remain majority owner of the new company. Shares in HP Enterprise slid 48 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $21.61, while Intel shed 30 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $36.15.
JACKED: Apple slid 2.4 percent a day after the consumer electronics giant introduced its newest slate of products, including a new iPhone that doesn’t come with an analog headphone jack.
USA crude CLC1 climbed as high as $47.75 on Thursday. It pulled back 0.9 percent to $49.53, still up 5.8 percent this week.
The euro economy should expand by 1.6 percent in each of the following two years, he added, down from the earlier 1.7 percent forecasts for 2017 and 2018.
EUROPE FACTOR: Weighing on market sentiments was the European Central Bank decision to leave key interest rates unchanged. They are set for gains of 0.7 percent and 1 percent, respectively, for the week.
Brent LCOc1 rose to as high as $50.14 per barrel on Thursday and last stood at $49.63, down 0.7 percent from Thursday’s close but still up nearly 6 percent so far this week. Earlier, a report showing that imports rose in China last month for the first time since late 2014, while a contraction in exports narrowed, helped lift some markets in Asia. The Kospi index in Seoul fell 1.3 percent to 2,037.87.
USA stocks fell modestly overnight as disappointment over the lack of action by the European Central Bank overshadowed a surge in oil prices and upbeat jobless claims data.
The uptick in bond yields was also partly driven by a four-percent surge in oil prices on Thursday to two-week highs, after slump in U.S. Gulf Coast imports to a record low led to surprisingly huge drawdown in U.S. crude stocks. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.0 percent to 24,154.28, while the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.4 percent to 3,083.65. The risks to the euro area growth outlook remain tilted to the downside and relate mainly to the external environment.This assessment is broadly reflected in the September 2016 European Central Bank staff macroeconomic projections for the euro area, which foresee annual real GDP increasing by 1.7% in 2016, by 1.6% in 2017 and by 1.6% in 2018. Brent crude, used to price worldwide oils, lost 58 cents to $49.41 in London.
The yen was mildly higher against other major currencies on continuing speculation that the Bank of Japan may be slowing its government bond purchases in coming months.
European bond markets remained under pressure following the ECB meeting, with the 10-year German Bund yield rising around 3 basis points to minus 0.035 per cent.
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Asian stocks are broadly lower and oil prices dipped after climbing more than 4 percent on Thursday, while a rise in US bond yields lifted the dollar up against the Japanese yen.
