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Japan (NKY:IND) +0.54%. Japan January Services PMI 53.1 (prior 51.5)
China (SHCOMP) -1.02%. The Shanghai Composite dropped 1.02% to close at 2,702 while the Shenzhen Component tumbled 1.13% to 7,965 on Monday, hitting their lowest levels in about five years as economic and policy uncertainties continued to dampen investor sentiment. China’s securities regulator vowed to prevent abnormal market fluctuations, but investors want to see more concrete measures to support the equity and property markets.
China Caixin Services PMI for January 52.7 (prior 52.9).
Hong Kong (HSI) -0.11%. The S&P Global Hong Kong SAR PMI fell to 49.9 in January 2024 from 51.3 in December, signaling broadly unchanged private sector conditions at the start of the year.
India (SENSEX) +0.18%. The HSBC India Services PMI was revised higher to 61.8 in January 2024 from a preliminary estimate of 61.2 and higher than December’s figure of 59. The HSBC India Composite PMI was revised upward to 61.2 in January 2024 from flash data of 61.0 and after December’s reading of 58.5.
Australia (AS51) -0.95%. Australian data – January imports and exports both higher than in December.
Australia January Services PMI 49.1 (prior 47.1).
Australia: Melbourne Institute January headline inflation gauge +0.3% m/m (prior +1.0%).
Job advertisements in Australia increased by 1.7% month-over-month in January 2024, strongly accelerating from an upwardly revised 0.6% rise in the previous month.
In the U.S. on Friday, all three major indexes ended in green as strong US jobs data and another pushback from Powell further dented sentiment around Fed rate cuts.
Investors continued to digest a statement from US Fed Chair Powell in an interview Sunday that the central bank will likely lower interest rates later this year but it was just “not likely” to happen in March.
U.S. stock futures held steady on Monday as investors look forward to more earnings reports and economic data this week: Dow -0.17%; S&P 500 -0.20%; Nasdaq -0.24%.
Investors also turned cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s monetary policy decision on Tuesday, where it is expected to hold interest rates steady.
China, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, and Hong Kong will all see shortened trading weeks as the Lunar New Year approaches.
Currencies: (JPY:USD), (CNY:USD), (AUD:USD), (INR:USD), (HKD:USD), (NZD:USD).