Market Talk – April 24, 2023

ASIA:

Coca Cola’s President and CFO, John Murphy, expressed confidence in India’s economy, stating that it remains resilient with a strong job market and robust consumption. The company has increased its availability in over 300,000 stores in India, driving 3 billion transactions in the first quarter at affordable price points. Coca-Cola is focused on delivering value for its customers and consumers through integrated execution with its bottling partners. The company has seen growth in both developed and developing markets, including Asia Pacific, where the reopening of China has led to an increase in consumer activity. Although consumption is still recovering to pre-pandemic levels, Murphy believes that India’s economy will continue to remain strong.

The major Asian stock markets had a mixed day today:

• NIKKEI 225 increased 29.15 points or 0.10% to 28,593.52
• Shanghai decreased 25.84 points or -0.78% to 3,275.41
• Hang Seng decreased 115.79 points or -0.58% to 19,959.94
• ASX 200 decreased 8.40 points or -0.11% to 7,322.00
• Kospi decreased 20.90 points or -0.82% to 2,523.50
• SENSEX increased 401.04 points or 0.67% to 60,056.10
• Nifty50 increased 119.35 points or 0.68% to 17,743.40

The major Asian currency markets had a mixed day today:

• AUDUSD decreased 0.00015 or -0.02% to 0.66885
• NZDUSD increased 0.0022 or 0.36% to 0.61550
• USDJPY increased 0.167 or 0.12% to 134.317
• USDCNY increased 0.00518 or 0.08% to 6.90438

Precious Metals:

• Gold increased 6.91 USD/t oz. or 0.35% to 1,989.80
• Silver increased 0.172 USD/t. oz or 0.69% to 25.203

No economic news from last night:

Some economic news from today:

Singapore:

Core CPI (YoY) (Mar) decreased from 5.50% to 5.00%

CPI (YoY) (Mar) decreased from 6.3% to 5.5%

Hong Kong:

Unemployment Rate (Mar) decreased from 3.3% to 3.1%

EUROPE/EMEA:

The former chief economist of the Bank of England predicts that inflation in the UK will fall rapidly in the coming months, advising interest rate setters to pause further increases. Inflation has risen due to disruptions caused by the pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine, with energy prices increasing in particular. The Bank has raised interest rates to slow down inflation, which has slightly eased to 10.1% in February. The former chief economist believes that in six months, headline inflation rates will be 3-5%, not double digits. Markets suggest that there is an 88% chance that Bank Rate will increase to 4.5% in May, but some economists predict that this could be the last increase in the current cycle.

The major Europe stock markets had a negative day today:

• CAC 40 decreased 3.14 points or -0.04% to 7,573.86
• FTSE 100 decreased 1.93 points or -0.02% to 7,912.20
• DAX 30 decreased 17.71 points or -0.11% to 15,863.95

The major Europe currency markets had a mixed day today:

• EURUSD increased 0.00582 or 0.53% to 1.10452
• GBPUSD increased 0.00499 or 0.40% to 1.24799
• USDCHF decreased 0.00483 or -0.54% to 0.88777

Some economic news from Europe today:

Germany:

German Business Expectations (Apr) increased from 91.0 to 92.2

German Current Assessment (Apr) decreased from 95.4 to 95.0

German Ifo Business Climate Index (Apr) increased from 93.2 to 93.6

US/AMERICAS:

Artificial intelligence (AI) could be fueling an upcoming wave of deflation, according to Ron Insana, an American financial journalist. Insana argues that AI is driving down the cost of goods and services, which could lead to a deflationary spiral. He suggests that AI is making it easier for companies to automate tasks and reduce labor costs, which could lead to lower prices for consumers. However, this could also lead to lower wages and less spending, which could further exacerbate the deflationary spiral. Insana suggests that policymakers need to be aware of the potential risks of AI and take steps to mitigate them, such as investing in education and training programs to help workers adapt to the changing economy.

US Market Closings:

• Dow advanced 66.44 points or 0.2% to 33,875.4
• S&P 500 advanced 3.52 points or 0.09% to 4,137.04
• Nasdaq declined 35.25 points or -0.29% to 12,037.2
• Russell 2000 declined 2.63 points or -0.15% to 1,788.87

Canada Market Closings:

• TSX Composite declined 16.41 points or -0.08% to 20,676.74
• TSX 60 declined 1.95 points or -0.16% to 1,247.04

Brazil Market Closing:

• Bovespa declined 420.24 points or -0.4% to 103,946.58

ENERGY:

The oil markets had a green day today:

• Crude Oil increased 1.328 USD/BBL or 1.71% to 79.198
• Brent increased 1.409 USD/BBL or 1.73% to 83.070
• Natural gas increased 0.0544 USD/MMBtu or 2.44% to 2.2874
• Gasoline increased 0.0413 USD/GAL or 1.59% to 2.6429
• Heating oil increased 0.0565 USD/GAL or 2.27% to 2.5451

The above data was collected around 13:45 EST on Monday

• Top commodity gainers: Natural Gas (2.44%), Heating Oil (2.27%), Brent (1.73%) and Sugar (4.35%)
• Top commodity losers: Steel (-2.70%), Platinum (-3.39%), Palladium (-4.64%) and Wheat (-2.52%)

The above data was collected around 13:53 EST Monday.

BONDS:

Japan 0.470% (+0.3bp), US 2’s 4.15% (-0.044%), US 10’s 3.5147% (-5.73bps); US 30’s 3.73% (-0.052%), Bunds 2.514% (+2.8bp), France 3.076% (+7.9bp), Italy 4.374% (+1.8bp), Turkey 11.92% (+0bp), Greece 4.281% (-3.6bp), Portugal 3.335% (+0.3bp); Spain 3.552% (+2.6bp) and UK Gilts 3.783% (+2.5bp).

The post Market Talk – April 24, 2023 first appeared on Armstrong Economics.