China Official PMI Data Due For Release On Friday

Aug 30 18, 06:15 GMT

General Trend:

Asian equity markets trade mixed, despite record gains in the US
Australian telecoms TPG and Vodafone Hutchison Australia rise on merger plan
Chinese earnings remain in focus: ICBC and Air China are among the companies expected to report today
New Zealand business confidence hits new multi-year low
In Australia, Q2 CAPEX and July building approvals miss expectations

Headlines/Economic Data

Australia/New Zealand

ASX 200 opened +0.1%
ASX 200 Telecom index +2.9%, Utilities +0.7%, Energy +0.3%; Resources -0.2%, Financials -0.2%
(AU) AUSTRALIA Q2 PRIVATE CAPITAL EXPENDITURE (CAPEX): -2.5% V +0.6%E
(AU) AUSTRALIA JUL BUILDING APPROVALS M/M: -5.2% V -2.0%E; Y/Y: -5.6% V -3.0%E
(AU) Australia Weather Bureau: Sept and Oct are likely to be drier than avg across most of the country; drier and warmer than avg Spring likely to intensify drought
(NZ) NEW ZEALAND AUG ANZ ACTIVITY OUTLOOK: 3.8 V 3.8 PRIOR; BUSINESS CONFIDENCE: -50.3 V -44.9 PRIOR (new multi-year low)
(NZ) New Zealand Jul Building Permits M/M: -10.3% v -7.6% prior (largest decline in more than 3 years)
(NZ) New Zealand sells NZ$250M in 3.00% April 2029 bonds, avg yield 2.5676%, bid to cover 2.92x

China/Hong Kong

Shanghai Composite opened flat, Hang Seng +0.4%
Hang Seng Telecom index -1.7%, Industrial Goods -1.1%, Info Tech -1%, Services -1%, Consumer Goods -0.9%, Property/Construction -0.6%, Financials -0.5%, Utilities -0.5%
(CN) China PBoC set yuan reference rate: 6.8113 v 6.8072 prior
(CN) China PBoC Open Market Operation (OMO): Skips OMO (7th straight skip)
(CN) China govt pledges to improve credit policy for property market – financial press
(HK) Property developers in Hong Kong said to offer 6,000 homes in Sept, which is the most in 5 years – Local Press
(CN) China NDRC: Has already approved 152 major infrastructure projects in the Western regions of China worth a combined CNY3.75T
(CN) Fitch Report: China policy easing to stop short of credit stimulus: does not see the US tariffs that already have been imposed on Chinese goods as being large enough to revise growth forecasts

Japan

Nikkei 225 opened +0.8%
TOPIX Marine Transportation index +0.6%, Retail Trade +0.3%, Electric Appliances +0.2%; Real Estate -0.4%, Securities -0.3%, Iron & Steel -0.2%, Info & Communications -0.2%
Megabanks underperform
Automakers trade generally weaker
Panasonic: To move European headquarters from London to Amsterdam in Oct to avoid possible tax issues and barriers for flow of workers and goods related to Brexit (Nikkei)
(JP) Japan Jul Retail Sales M/M: 0.1% v 0.2%e; Retail Trade Y/Y: 1.5% v 1.2%e
(JP) Japan Cabinet Office (Govt) Monthly Economic Report for Aug: Lowers assessment on exports (lowered for the first time since Aug 2015)
(JP) Japan Jul Dept Store and Supermarket Sales: -1.6 v -0.7%e
(JP) Japan MOF sells ¥2.1T v ¥2.1T indicated in 0.10% 2-year bonds, avg yield -0.1120% v -0.117% prior, bid to cover 5.26x v 4.38x prior

Korea

Kospi opened +0.2%
(KR) South Korea may announce cabinet reshuffle later today – South Korean Press
(KR) Trump tweets about North Korea: have a warm relationship with Kim Jong Un; see no need to spend money on South Korea war games at this time
(KR) US and South Korea said to plan to hold Air Force drills in Dec – South Korean Press
(KR) South Korea Sept Business Survey: Manufacturing: 77 v 73 prior
(KR) South Korea Jul Department Store Sales Y/Y: 2.9% v 5.4% prior; Discount Store Sales Y/Y: -2.5% v +0.2% prior

Other

(MY) Malaysia Official: Set the new sales tax rate at 5-10%, new services tax rate at 6%

North America

US equity markets ended higher: Dow +0.2%, S&P500 +0.6%, Nasdaq +1%, Russell 2000 +0.4%
S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary +1.1%, Technology +0.9%
(US) DOE CRUDE: -2.6M V -1ME
(US) US President Trump: Necessary to maintain aluminum tariff levels; US still in talks with nations on aluminum tariffs

Europe

(EU) France Pres Macron reportedly proposed a new structure for EU alliances – press
(EU) EU said to consider full summit in Nov to discuss Brexit (in-line with recent speculation)
(UK) Nigel Farage said to consider running to become mayor of London – FT

Levels as of 01:30ET

Nikkei 225, +0.1%, ASX 200 +0.1%, Hang Seng -0.8%; Shanghai Composite -0.8%; Kospi flat
Equity Futures: S&P500 -0.1%; Nasdaq100 -0.2%, Dax -0.3%; FTSE100 -0.3%
EUR 1.1714-1.1695 ; JPY 111.77-111.51 ; AUD 0.7317-0.7274 ;NZD 0.6718-0.6652
Aug Gold -0.1% at $1,209/oz; Sept Crude Oil +0.3% at $69.69/brl; Sept Copper -0.3% at $2.724 /lb