Investors quiet ahead of ECB meeting, U.K. election, Comey testimony
Equity markets in the Asia-Pacific region were relatively quiet ahead of a number of news events with global implications, though South Korean stocks underperformed following the latest North Korean missile launch.
The Kospi SEU fell 0.3% and the U.S. dollar rose 0.2% against the Korean won, extending Wednesday’s gains. Korea’s stocks and currency have been among the best performers this year in Asia, which creates a ripe environment for some profit-taking.
Later today, elections in the U.K. will get under way, the European Central Bank will hold its latest meeting and James Comey, the former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, will testify on Capitol Hill.
“There is an element of caution,” said Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG Markets. But he doesn’t think the U.K. and ECB will have much market impact. Rather, Weston pointed to next week’s Federal Reserve meeting.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 XJO, +0.06% was down 0.1% and on pace for a fourth straight decline. The index closed at its lowest level in four months on Wednesday and is down 2% so far this week. An overnight slump in oil prices has weighed on Australian stocks.
Oil Search OSH and Woodside Petroleum WPL shares each fell nearly 2% in Sydney while Inpex 1605 and Japan Petroleum Exploration 1662 shed about 1.5% in Tokyo. August futures for Brent crude LCOQ7, the international benchmark, recently rose 0.5% to $48.28 a barrel.
The Nikkei NIK was recently up 0.1% as the dollar JPYUSD rose back toward ¥110. Investors in Japan seem to have looked past data which showed Japan’s economy growing at a slower pace in the first quarter than initially estimated. But there is hope that this quarter’s reading will be stronger.
“Consumer spending is picking up strongly,” said Marcel Thieliant, a senior Japan economist at Capital Economics, adding that spending should remain a story throughout 2017. Spending in the first quarter, though, wasn’t particularly strong, he said.
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The United Capital Management Joint Stock Company (Unicap) which manages investment funds will provide financial services to FLC and Faros in the near future.
Techcombank has announced that two separate legal entities managed by Warburg Pincus will invest over US$370 million into the Bank, subject to appropriate regulatory approvals.
In only the first two months of this year, the banking, financial services and insurance sector (BFSI) of Vietnam received up to US$1.45 billion worth of investment.
It is feared that the escalating trend of trade protectionism will hinder global growth and make many businesses struggle for survival.
According to the World Bank, remittances to Vietnam in 2017 are estimated at a record high of US$13.81 billion, increasing by US$1.9 billion, equivalent to 16% over 2016.
Within less than five months leading the Southeast Asia Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SeABank), Nguyen Canh Vinh has resigned from this position since February 8, 2018, for personal reason.
