Stocks Whipsaw, Yen Climbs in Mixed Start to Year: Markets Wrap

European stock futures fell after a Monday rally, matching declines in Australian and South Korean benchmarks, while US equity futures were steady, offering a mixed picture of global markets as traders returned to their desks.

(Bloomberg) — European stock futures fell after a Monday rally, matching declines in Australian and South Korean benchmarks, while US equity futures were steady, offering a mixed picture of global markets as traders returned to their desks.

Contracts for the Euro Stoxx 50 dropped about 1%, taking the shine off a 1.7% jump for the index on Monday. South Korea’s Kospi benchmark fell and shares in Australia tumbled more than 1% to the lowest level in almost two months. An index of the dollar rose and the Australian 10-year yield climbed 5 basis points.

The mixed performance for stocks followed the sharp swings of last year that saw a fifth in value wiped from global equities, the worst run since the financial crisis. Bonds lost 16% of value in 2022, the biggest decline since at least 1990 for one leading measure, as central banks hiked interest rates to slow consumer price gains.

The yen held gains from Monday to trade near its highest level since June. The advance follows sustained efforts by the Bank of Japan to depress yields on government debt. The stronger yen indicates traders believe the central bank will be forced to reduce its easy policy settings as inflation rises.

Read more: As Roads Split in 2022 Stocks, One Trade Made All the Difference

Elsewhere in markets, oil advanced while the price of US natural gas fell as warmer weather was expected to reduce demand for heating. China purchasing managers index data to be released later today is set to show the fifth monthly contraction. Other data on the docket for Tuesday includes German unemployment claims.

Read more: Treasury Strategists Expect Lower Yields, Steeper Curve in 2023

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 9:51 a.m. Tokyo time
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.5%
South Korea’s Kospi Index fell 1.2%
Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.9%

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%
The euro was little changed at $1.0672
The Japanese yen was little changed at 130.72 per dollar
The offshore yuan fell 0.1% to 6.9349 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin fell 0.4% to $16,691.19
Ether fell 0.3% to $1,215.51

Bonds

Australia’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 4.01%

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.1% to $80.37 a barrel
Spot gold rose 0.4% to $1,831.26 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

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