Asia Market News
In Asia stocks were higher on Wednesday as nervous investors counted down to Britain’s make-or-break European Union referendum, while Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s cautious tone on future rate hikes added to a subdued mood in markets. The Nikkei fell 1.0% to 16,007.52 in midmorning trade after rising 4.7 percent in the past three days. China’s CSI 300 index and the Shanghai Composite both advanced about 0.3%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.1%.
Currency Market News
USD/JPY went as high as 105.00 yen for the first time in nearly a week late on Tuesday, but last traded at 104.55, down 0.2%. The EUR/USD added 0.2% to $1.1266. GBP/USD last traded at $1.4683, up 0.2%.
Commodity Market News
Crude oil prices rose in early Asian trading on Wednesday, with U.S. crude joining Brent above $50 a barrel after data from the American Petroleum Institute showed a larger than expected draw on stocks. U.S. crude futures’ August contract, the new front month from Wednesday, had climbed 9 cents to $49.94 a barrel. Brent crude futures were up 4 cents at $50.66 a barrel, after settling down 3 cents at $50.62 on Tuesday. U.S. crude inventories fell by 5.2 million barrels for the week ended June 17, the API said. Spot gold was nearly flat at $1,268.49 an ounce.
US Market News
In the US, stocks rose on Tuesday, led by gains in technology shares as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen was optimistic about the economy and played down the risk of a recession, while concern over the upcoming British referendum remained subdued. The S&P 500 gained 0.27%, to 2,088.9. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) led the S&P advance with a 2.2% gain followed by Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) 0.8% rise. United Continental (NYSE:UAL) rose 3.4% after the airline operator laid out plans to generate an extra $3.1 billion in operating income per year by 2018.
Bond Market News
U.S. Treasury yields rose to one-and-a-half week highs on Tuesday after the Treasury saw soft demand for a sale of five-year notes and as investors evaluated whether Britain will vote to remain in the European Union on Thursday. Benchmark 10-year notes were last down 9/32 in price to yield 1.699 percent, up from 1.670 percent late on Monday. The Treasury will sell $28 billion in seven-year notes on Wednesday in addition to $13 billion in two-year floating-rate notes. It will also sell $5 billion in 30-year Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) on Thursday.
Economic Calendar
13:30 GMT+1 CAD Core Retail Sales m/m
15:00 GMT+1 US Fed Chair Yellen Testifies
15:30 GMT+1 US Crude Oil Inventories
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