Asian Indices Trade Mixed

Aug 31 20, 05:51 GMT

General Trend:

Japanese equities outperform, trading cos. rise on investment from Buffett; Other gainers in Japan include Air Transportation firms
Softbank Group rises over 4%, disclosed plan to sell shares in Softbank Corp
Energy, Tech and Gaming firms are among the gainers in Hong Kong; BYD Co rises over 3% post earnings, Geely also outperforms the broader market
Shanghai Composite rose by 0.8% during morning session, Telecom Services firms rose following earnings from ZTE; Consumer Staples also rise; Consumer Discretionary and property shares lagged
Consumer shares decline in Australia, gainers include Energy firms
RBA due to issue policy decision on Tuesday (Sept 1st)

Headlines/Economic Data

Australia/New Zealand

ASX 200 opened +0.1%
(AU) Victoria Premier Andrews reported to reveal roadmap to exit Lockdown on Sept 6th; another week of data needed to create roadmap
(AU) Victoria state (Australia) reports 73 additional coronavirus cases v 94 prior; 41 additional deaths (Highest total daily deaths)
(AU) AUSTRALIA Q2 CORP OP PROFIT Q/Q: +15.0% V -6.5%E; INVENTORIES Q/Q: -3.0% V -1.0%E; The seasonally adjusted estimate for company gross operating profits…has been impacted by Government subsidies
(AU) Australia July Private Sector Credit M/M: -0.1% v -0.1%e; Y/Y: 2.4% v 2.6%e
(AU) Follow Up: China Commerce Ministry confirms beginning probe into Australia Wine due to Australia Subsidies
(AU) Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) offers to buy A$2.0B in 2023 and 2024 bonds v A$2.0B prior
(AU) Australia sells A$2.0B v A$2.0B indicated in 2.50% May 2030 bonds, avg yield 0.9794%, bid to cover 6.03x
(NZ) Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) buys NZ$470M v NZ$320M prior in government bonds as part of QE v NZ$470M sought
(NZ) New Zealand Aug Final ANZ Business Confidence: -41.8 v -42.4 prelim; Activity Outlook: -17.5 v -17.0 prelim
(NZ) Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) Gov Orr will give a speech on Sept 2nd (Wednesday) on monetary policy response to coronavirus

China/Hong Kong

Shanghai Composite opened +0.4%, Hang Seng opened +1.2%
(CN) CHINA AUG MANUFACTURING PMI (GOVT OFFICIAL): 51.0 V 51.2E (6 straight expansions); Non-Manufacturing PMI: 55.2 v 54.2e (6th straight month of expansion)
(CN) On Aug 28, China changed its list of technologies that bans or restricts exports; China issued new restrictions related to exports of artificial-intelligence (AI) technology
(CN) China PBOC sets Yuan reference rate: 6.8605 v 6.8891 prior (Strongest fix since July 2nd 2019)
(CN) China PBoC Open Market Operation (OMO): Injects CNY20B in 7-day reverse repos v Injects CNY50B in 7-day prior; Net drain CNY80B v Net drain CNY100B prior
(CN) China PBoC Official: Warns of rising risks in key areas, warns of risks related to small banks – China Press

Japan

Nikkei225 opened +1.2%
(JP) Japan Chief Cabinet Sec Suga reported to run in LDP elections to succeed current PM Abe; Kishida (LDP policy chief) to also run in the LDP leadership elections – Japan Press
(JP) Follow Up: Japan LDP Party reported to decide to hold leadership vote on Sept 14th – Japan Press [conflicting report]
(JP) Japan LDP Official Nikai: There is no party vote for a new leader – Press
Japan’s next PM is expected to be elected in a special parliamentary session due to be held by as early as Sept 17th (Nikkei)
(JP) JAPAN JULY PRELIMINARY INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: 8.0% V 5.0%E (Highest M/M growth since 1978); Y/Y: -16.1% V -17.5%E; Japan government: Raises assessment of industrial production, notes production is picking up.
(JP) Bank of Japan (BOJ) announces Bond purchases for month of Sept: To maintain current pace of purchases in all maturities (from Aug 28th)
(JP) JAPAN JULY RETAIL SALES M/M: -3.3% V -2.5%E; Y/Y: -2.8% V -1.7%E
(JP) JAPAN JULY ANNUALIZED HOUSING STARTS: 828K V 798KE; Y/Y: -11.4% V -12.5%E
(JP) JAPAN AUG CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: 29.3 V 28.5E

Korea

Kospi opened +1%
(KR) South Korea reported to be preparing additional steps to help economy – Local Press
(KR) South Korea confirms 248 additional coronavirus cases v 299 prior; 1 additional death; South Korea notes fewer tests were conducted over the weekend
(KR) SOUTH KOREA JULY INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: 1.6% V 2.5%E; Y/Y: -2.5% V -2.0%E

Europe

Levels as of 1:20 ET

Nikkei 225, +1.3%, ASX 200 -0.1% , Hang Seng +0.9%; Shanghai Composite +0.6% ; Kospi -0.9%
Equity S&P500 Futures: +0.4%; Nasdaq100 +0.6%, Dax +0.4%
EUR 1.1929-1.1896 ; JPY 105.80-105.29 ; AUD 0.7381-0.7346 ;NZD 0.6751-0.6726
Gold +0.2% at $1,978/oz; Crude Oil +0.4% at $43.13/brl; Copper +0.6% at $3.0265/lb