(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks were mixed as the U.S. dollar rose after Donald Trump’s assassination attempt boosted bets that his chances of winning the presidential election have increased.
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A Bloomberg index of the dollar’s strength against major bonds rose 0.2 percent in Asia, while S&P 500 contracts were little changed. U.S. Treasury futures fell, suggesting yields will rise when cash trades begin in London. Cash trading in US Treasuries was closed in Asia due to a holiday in Japan.
Shares in Australia and South Korea rose, while futures in Hong Kong showed an early loss when markets open. Australian bond yields fell. Bitcoin surged above $60,000 in the wake of the attack.
“Not reacting may turn out to be the smartest thing you can do,” said Oliver Pursche at Wealthspire Advisors. “Markets will find their equilibrium and return to the things that matter from an investment perspective, such as economic growth, monetary and fiscal policy and corporate earnings.”
In the wake of Saturday’s attack, the odds of him becoming president again have increased, according to PredictI data.
Trump’s support for looser fiscal policy and higher tariffs is generally seen as likely to benefit the dollar and weaken bonds. Yields rose in the wake of Joe Biden’s poor debate performance last month, showing the sensitivity of bonds – particularly longer-dated securities.
To be sure, there is still plenty of room for surprises with almost four months to go before the US election campaign.
Traders are also now grappling with how much of the impact has already been priced into markets as the odds of a Trump election steadily increased. Monday’s action also follows what many saw as a watershed week in the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation, with economic reports boosting bets for two rate cuts in 2024.
“It is surprising that markets did not react more to the increased uncertainty arising from Trump’s assassination attempt in early morning trading,” said Lloyd Chan, chief strategist at MUFG in Singapore. “It could be that the US dollar is still weighed down by the market’s lower expectations for Fed rate cuts after a series of cooler price pressures and weaker US economic data.”
Other assets positively linked to the so-called Trump trade include shares of energy companies, private prisons, credit card companies and health insurance companies. Renewable energy stocks could suffer. Bitcoin may rise further given both its appeal to investors seeking a hedge of political unrest away from conventional financial assets and Trump’s stance in favor of cryptocurrencies.
“From a markets perspective, I would suggest that if Trump emerges as an even more clear winner, then we should see the most intense bearishness we’ve seen since the debate,” said Michael Purves at Tallbacken Capital. “In terms of stocks, I don’t think this changes the trajectory across the board, although some stocks will benefit from lower corporate taxes and lower regulation.”
China
As the impact of Trump’s firing fades, investors will focus on the People’s Bank of China’s key interest rate decision and the start of a closed-door conference expected to set long-term policy on a wide range of economic and political issues.
The one-year medium-term lending facility is expected to remain unchanged at 2.5 percent as the central bank focuses on currency stability despite weak inflation, subdued consumption and the housing crash, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
Shortly after the decision, economic activity readings including GDP, retail sales and industrial production are also expected as President Xi Jinping convenes the first day of the Tuesday Plenary Session.
“Expectations are low for the meeting to lead to breakthrough policy initiatives and substantially boost confidence for the Chinese economy,” Commonwealth Bank of Australia strategists led by Joseph Capurso wrote. That said, markets will be watching closely if the government signals more demand-side policies, for example to boost consumer spending or infrastructure spending which may boost the Chinese yuan, Australian dollar and New Zealand dollar.
Key events this week:
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Eurozone industrial production, Monday
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US Empire State Manufacturing, Monday
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Goldman Sachs earnings, Monday
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Jerome Powell interviews David Rubinstein on Monday
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The Fed’s Mary Daly speaks Monday
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ZEW Germany survey expectations, Tuesday
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US retail sales, business inventories, Tuesday
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Morgan Stanley, Bank of America earnings, Tuesday
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The Fed’s Adriana Kugler speaks on Tuesday
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Eurozone CPI, Wednesday
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US housing starts, industrial production, Wednesday
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Fed Beige Book, Wednesday
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Fed’s Thomas Barkin speaks, Wednesday
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Decision on ECB interest rates, Thursday
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Initial US jobless claims, Philadelphia Fed production, LEI Board Conference, Thursday
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The Fed’s Mary Daly, Lorie Logan and Michelle Bowman speak, Thursday
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The Fed’s John Williams, Raphael Bostic, on Friday speak
Some of the main movements in the markets:
inventories
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S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 9:05 a.m. Tokyo time
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Hang Seng futures shed 0.5%
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Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4%
currency
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The Bloomberg Dollar Spot index rose 0.2%
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The euro fell 0.2% to $1.0885
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The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 158.30 per dollar
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The offshore yuan was down 0.2% at 7.2858 per dollar
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The Australian dollar fell 0.3% to $0.6765
Cryptocurrencies
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Bitcoin rose 1.2% to $60,858.72
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Ether rose 1.4% to $3,245.73
Bindings
Goods
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West Texas Intermediate crude was down 0.1% at $82.12 a barrel
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Spot gold fell 0.2% to $2,407.56 an ounce
This story was created with help from Bloomberg Automation.
–With help from Ruth Carson, Allegra Catelli, Jessica Menton and Esha Dey.
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