Asian markets mostly up as attention turns to US jobs – Macau Business

Asian equities were mixed Friday as investors battled to instigate a recovery after this weeks volatile start to the new year, with the release of key US jobs data later in the day taking centre stage.

News that the Federal Reserve is planning a more aggressive campaign to fight surging inflation rattled global traders, who have enjoyed almost two years of cheap cash that has helped push some markets to record or multi-year highs.

The Feds decision to remove the support put in place at the start of the pandemic comes as the worlds top economy continues to show resilience, with unemployment falling, despite supply chain snarls and rising energy costs that have sent prices racing.

Minutes released Wednesday showed the positive view on the recovery has led the US central bank to start hiking interest rates sooner and quicker than had been expected.

There were also indications officials were considering reducing its massive bond holdings, putting further upward pressure on lending costs Treasury yields are set for their biggest weekly jump since 2020, according to Bloomberg News.

The minutes sent markets plunging around the world, with tech firms among the worst hit as they are more reliant on debt to fuel growth.

And Wall Street extended losses Thursday, though the selling was less severe.

Asia fared a little better, with Hong Kong, Sydney and Seoul rising more than one percent each, while Singapore, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta also rose. Tokyo pared early losses to end flat, with Shanghai, Wellington, Taipei and Manila lower.

We knew coming into 2022 that the Fed was going to be a creator of volatility within the market and were seeing that right out of the gate at the start of the year, Lindsey Bell, at Ally Invest, told Bloomberg News.

The good news is that things seem to be stabilising a little bit after (the initial) knee-jerk reaction.

Eyes are now on the release of the closely watched non-farm payroll figures for December, which could impact the Feds decision on when and how quickly to lift rates.

A figure way above the forecast 447,000 new posts could force officials to take a more hawkish tilt, which would likely weigh further on equities.

Crude markets built on their recent run-up as concerns about the impact of the fast-spreading Omicron Covid variant fade, allowing traders to focus on the demand picture.

While crucial consumer China continues to battle outbreaks by imposing new lockdowns, unrest in producer Kazakhstan and a drop in output from Libya was providing support.

Oil has rallied in recent weeks as financial markets have dismissed Omicron, rightly or wrongly, as a temporary aberration, said OANDAs Jeffrey Halley.

That momentum accelerated this week, despite OPEC+ hiking production, and now we have Kazakhstan and Libya disruptions adding to the bullishness.

Bitcoin was also under pressure, falling for a second day to $41,008, a level not seen since the end of September.

Hong Kong Hang Seng Index: UP 1.5 percent at 23,417.98

Shanghai Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,579.54 (close)

Dollar/yen: UP at 115.93 yen from 115.89 yen late Thursday

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1301 from $1.1297

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3542 from $1.3534

Euro/pound: UP at 83.45 pence from 83.44 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.0percent at $80.24 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.0percent at $82.79 per barrel

New York DOW: DOWN 0.5percent at 36,236.47 (close)

London FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 7,450.37 (close)

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Asian markets mostly up as attention turns to US jobs - Macau Business