General Trend:
- Asian equity markets trade mixed
- US midterm elections go as expected; Democrats taking control of the House, while Republicans gain a few more seats and retain control of the Senate
- China official said domestic vehicle sales may decline from 2017 levels
- China PBoC sells yuan-denominated bills in Hong Kong for the first time ever
- Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) to hold policy meeting on Thursday
Headlines/Economic Data
Japan
- Nikkei 225 opened +0.2%
- (JP) Japan Oct Official Reserve Assets: $1.25T v $1.26T prior
- (JP) Japan Sept Labor Cash Earnings y/y: 1.1% v 1.1%e; Real Cash Earnings y/y: -0.4% v -0.3%e
- (JP) Bank of Japan (BoJ) official Funo: BoJ will continue to take appropriate policy; BOJ forward guidance indicates it will not whittle down powerful monetary stimulus for now
Korea
- Kospi opened flat
- (KR) Talks between US Sec of State Pompeo and North Korea official said to be delayed ‘indefinitely’ – South Korean Press
- (KR) South Korea Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Choi Jong-ku hinted at cutting or removing the securities transaction tax on the Korean equity market and to discuss the matter with tax authorities – Korean press
- (KR) South Korea effectuated its temporary tax break on vehicle fuels in an effort to alleviate the economic burden, resulting in a sharp decline in the price of gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas – Korean press
China/Hong Kong
- Hang Seng opened flat, Shanghai Composite flat
- (CN) Reportedly China govt planning new tax cuts measures – Chinese press
- (HK) In Oct there were no applications for flat pre-sales in Hong Kong – Local Press
- (CN) China PBoC Gov Yi Gang: Affirms support for private sector – China Economic Information Daily
- (CN) China PBOC sells in Hong Kong CNY10B v CNY10B indicated in 3.79% 3-month bills; Sells CNY10B v CNY10B in 4.20% 1-yr bills
- (CN) China PBoC Open Market Operations (OMO): Skips OMO v skipped prior; Keeps neutral position
- (CN) China PBoC sets Yuan reference rate at: 6.9065 v 6.9075 prior
- (CN) China State Asset Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) Dir Xiao Yaqing: China is encouraging more foreign and private investors to take part in reforming state-owned enterprises (SOE) – speaking at CIIE
- (CN) China PBoC Gov Yi Gang: Affirms prudent, neutral monetary policy
- (CN) S&P: China home prices are at their peak, could fall up to 5% in 2019
- 388.HK Reports Q3 (HK$) Net 2.4B v 2.0B y/y, EBITDA 3.1B v 2.6B y/y, Rev 4.10B v 3.45B y/y
- (CN) China Premier Li: Ready to increase investment cooperation with Russia
Australia/New Zealand
- ASX 200 opened +1.0%
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND Q3 UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: 3.9% V 4.4%E; Employment Change q/q: 1.1% v 0.5%e; y/y: 2.8% v 2.0% prior
- CBA.AU Reports Q1 (A$) cash profit 2.50B v 2.65B y/y
- WTP.AU Issues clarification of media reports related to the Linderman Island Project: Was recently named as the preferred contractor for the project, has not yet secured contract for main works
- (AU) Australia sells A$1.0B v A$1.0B indicated in 2.75% Nov 2028 bonds, avg yield 2.7387%, bid to cover 2.99x
- (NZ) New Zealand Q4 2-yr Inflation Expectations: 2.0% v 2.0% prior
Other Asia
- (SG) Singapore Central Bank (MAS) Menon: Debt risk has moved to emerging economies; need mechanism to help with dollar liquidity shortage
North America
- (US) Former Fed Chair Yellen: Unclear the US has tools to deal appropriately with risks
- (US) Midterm Elections: See Republicans retain control and give up control to Democrats in the House (as widely expected)
Europe
- (UK) UK Cabinet said to be close to a deal on Ireland border; ministers said to be on standby for a second cabinet meeting to sign off on agreed approach – press
- (FR) France Finance Min Le Maire: Europe will not allow US to be ‘trade policeman’ – FT
- (UK) BOE’s Shafik: Most likely near term outcome is to delay Brexit – press
- (CH) SNB’s Zurbruegg: Reiterates stance that still have room to maneuver on rates; ready to intervene on currency if needed – financial press
Levels as of 12:50ET
- Hang Seng -0.2%; Shanghai Composite -0.5%; Kospi -0.3%; Nikkei225 +0.4%; ASX 200 +0.4%
- Equity Futures: S&P500 +0.1%; Nasdaq100 +0.2%, Dax +0.1%; FTSE100 +0.0%
- EUR 1.1396-1.1473; JPY 112.97-113.82 ; AUD 0.7213-0.7272;NZD 0.6713-0.6779
- Dec Gold +0.3% at $1,229/oz; Dec Crude Oil -0.6% at $61.84/brl; Dec Copper +0.4% at $2.74/lb
