Asia Morning September 16

Asia Morning: U.S. Stocks Pare Gains, But Close Higher

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks ended higher though paring gains throughout the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 2 points to 27995, the S&P 500 rose 17 points (+0.52%) to 3401, and the Nasdaq 100 advanced 161 points (+1.43%) to 11438.

S&P 500 Index: Daily Chart

Sources: GAIN Capital, TradingView

Market sentiment was supported by upbeat U.S. economic data. The Empire Manufacturing Index jumped to 17.0 in September (6.9 expected), and Industrial Production advanced 0.4% on month in August (+1.0% expected).

Media (+1.95%), Retailing (+1.43%) and Real Estate (+1.39%) sectors performed the best. Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN +6.31%), Qorvo (QRVO +5.82%) and Occidental Petroleum (OXY +5.31%) were the top gainers, while Carnival Corp (CCL -10.76%) and Citigroup (C -6.94%) were top losers.

JPMorgan Chase (JPM) dropped 3.11%.

Approximately 64.2% (60.2% in the prior session) of stocks in the S&P 500 Index were trading above their 200-day moving average and 52.5% (34.7% in the prior session) were trading above their 20-day moving average.

European stocks were broadly higher. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.66%, Germany's DAX 30 added 0.18%, France's CAC 40 rose 0.32%, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 jumped 1.32%.

The benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yield was stable at 0.678%.

U.S. WTI crude oil futures (October) advanced 2.7% to $38.28 a barrel. Traders were worried that the approaching Hurricane Sally would disrupt oil & gas production in northern U.S. Gulf Coast.

Spot gold jumped up to $1,972 an ounce before retreating to close at $1,954.

On the forex front, the ICE U.S. Dollar Index was flat on day at 93.07 ahead of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision due later today. It is widely expected the central bank would stick to its accommodative monetary policy.

EUR/USD fell 0.2% to 1.1849. The German ZEW Current Situation Index improved to -66.2 in September (-72.0 expected) from -81.3 in August, and Expectations Index climbed to 77.4 (69.5 expected) from 71.5.

GBP/USD advanced 0.3% to 1.2888. Official data showed that U.K. jobless rate rose to 4.1% (as expected) in the three months to July from 3.9% in the prior period.

USD/JPY dropped 0.3% to 105.40. This morning, government data showed that Japan recorded a trade surplus of 248.3 billion yen in August (15 billion yen deficit expected), where exports declined 14.8% on year (-16.1% expected) and imports slid 20.8% (-17.8% expected).

USD/CAD gained 0.1% to 1.3188. Canada's manufacturing sales grew 7.0% on month in July (+9.0% expected), according to the government. Later today, Canada's CPI for August will be released (+0.4% on year expected).

Other commodity-linked currencies were broadly higher against the greenback. Both AUD/USD and NZD/USD gained 0.2% to 0.7303 and 0.6714 respectively. Official data showed that China's industrial production rose 5.6% on year in August (+5.1% expected) and retail sales grew 0.5% (flat expected).

StoneX Financial Ltd (trading as “City Index”) is an execution-only service provider. This material, whether or not it states any opinions, is for general information purposes only and it does not take into account your personal circumstances or objectives. This material has been prepared using the thoughts and opinions of the author and these may change. However, City Index does not plan to provide further updates to any material once published and it is not under any obligation to keep this material up to date. This material is short term in nature and may only relate to facts and circumstances existing at a specific time or day. Nothing in this material is (or should be considered to be) financial, investment, legal, tax or other advice and no reliance should be placed on it.

No opinion given in this material constitutes a recommendation by City Index or the author that any particular investment, security, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. The material has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research. Although City Index is not specifically prevented from dealing before providing this material, City Index does not seek to take advantage of the material prior to its dissemination. This material is not intended for distribution to, or use by, any person in any country or jurisdiction where such distribution or use would be contrary to local law or regulation.

For further details see our full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. CFD and Forex Trading are leveraged products and your capital is at risk. They may not be suitable for everyone. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved by reading our full risk warning.

City Index is a trading name of StoneX Financial Ltd. Head and Registered Office: 1st Floor, Moor House, 120 London Wall, London, EC2Y 5ET. StoneX Financial Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales, number: 05616586. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. FCA Register Number: 446717.

City Index is a trademark of StoneX Financial Ltd.

The information on this website is not targeted at the general public of any particular country. It is not intended for distribution to residents in any country where such distribution or use would contravene any local law or regulatory requirement.