Headlines/Economic Data
General Trend:
China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines,Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam are all closed for holidays; There is a US holiday on Monday, Feb 19th
China equity futures gain in Singapore
Japan’s government confirms Kuroda to be nominated for another term as BoJ Governor; BoJ Exec Dir Amamiya (‘Mr BoJ’) and noted academic/reflationist Wakatabe nominated as Deputy Govs
Japanese sold net of ¥973.2B in foreign bonds in week ended Feb 16th
RBA Gov Lowe reiterates recent interest rate guidance; said Australia sovereign credit downgrade would be ‘political event’
US dollar trades generally weaker: EUR/USD hits highest level since Dec 2014, while the US Dollar Index hits the lowest level since that date.
Australia/New Zealand
ASX opened+0.3%: closed -0.1%
ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index -0.7%, Resources -0.6%, Financials -0.2%
(AU) RBA Gov Lowe: Labor market is noticeably stronger than RBA expected; reiterates more likely that next interest rate move will be rate hike
(AU) RBA Assistant Gov Ellis: Large degree of uncertainty around full employment est
(AU) Australia sells A$400M v A$400M indicated in Dec 2021 Bonds, avg yield 2.2960% v 2.0730% prior, bid to cover: 5.03x v 8.54x prior
(NZ) New Zealand Jan Non Resident Bond Holdings: 60.0% v 61.1%prior
China/Hong Kong
Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng are closed for holiday
China conglomerate HNA Group said to sell office building located in midtown Manhattan (1180 Sixth Ave) for more than $300M – US press
US SEC blocks the sale of the Chicago Stock Exchange (CHX) to a group led by China investors (Chongqing Casin Enterprise Group)
Japan
Nikkei 225 opened +0.4%: closed +1.2%
TOPIX Iron & Steel Index +1.5%, Electric Appliances +1.4%
Automakers trade generally higher: Toyota and Honda gain
Bridgestone [5108.JP] rises over 1% ahead of FY earnings
(JP) BoJ Gov Kuroda: Reiterates domestic economy expanding moderately, but price growth remains low; reiterates must maintain powerful easing for time being; Japan economy is ‘already NOT in a state of deflation’
(JP) Japan Fin Min Aso: Reiterates sudden FX moves have big effects on economy, watching foreign exchange moves ‘carefully’
Korea
Kospi closed for holiday
(KR) South Korea Pres Moon reportedly could visit North Korea if North Korean stance changes – Russian press
North America
US equity markets ended higher: Dow +1.2%, S&P500 +1.2%, Nasdaq +1.6%, Russell 2000+1%
S&P 500 Utilities +2.2%, Technology +1.9%
(US) DEC TOTAL NET TIC FLOWS: -$119.3B V +$33.5B PRIOR; NET LONG-TERM TIC FLOWS: $27.3B V $57.5B PRIOR
(US) Senate bipartisan amendment on immigration fails to pass procedural vote
GE [GE]: Said to have reached agreement to sell part of overseas lighting business to former executive for undisclosed figure -US financial press
Europe
(UK) UK Govt said to be prepared to set out its vision for financial services in the post Brexit environment – financial press
(DE) Germany EU budget contribution may rise €3.0-3.5B –German Press
Roche [ROG.CH]: To acquire health IT and services company Flatiron Health for $1.9B
Vivendi Universal [VIV.FR]: Reports FY adj net €1.31B v €755M, EBITA €987M v €724M, rev €12.4B v €10.8B y/y;Proposed dividend with respect to 2017: €0.45 per share, up 12.5%
Deutsche Bank [DBK.DE]: Largest shareholder China HNA Group said to cut stake to 8.8% vs 9.2% prior – FT
Looking Ahead: UK Jan Retail Sales due for release
Levels as of01:00ET
Equity Futures:S&P500 +0.2%; Nasdaq100 +0.3%, Dax +0.1%; FTSE100 +0.2%
EUR 1.2495-1.2556 ;JPY 105.54-106.37; AUD 0.7932-0.7972 ;NZD 0.7389-0.7428
Feb Gold +0.5% at $1,361.80/oz;Feb Crude Oil +0.5% at $61.66/brl; Mar Copper +0.3% at $3.256/lb
 and noted academic/reflationist Wakatabe nominated as Deputy Govs. Japanese sold net of ¥973.2B in foreign bonds in week ended Feb 16th. RBA Gov Lowe reiterates recent interest rate guidance; said Australia sovereign credit downgrade would be 'political event'){kind=link}