Market Recap: Stocks look set to fall while safe haven assets and oil are likely to continue to surge on Wednesday
Stocks in the US slipped on Tuesday, as investors remained cautious of tensions escalating between the US and Iran. But Nasdaq remained flat as chipmakers' stock rose. Micron surged 8.78% on Tuesday after the chip company was upgraded to outperform at Cowen, and as investors expect memory chip prices to start its recovery cycle.
| Indexes |
Change (%) |
Net Change |
Closing Price |
| Dow Jones |
-0.42% |
-119.70 |
28,583.68 |
| S&P500 |
-0.28% |
-9.10 |
3,237.18 |
| Nasdaq |
-0.03% |
-2.88 |
9,068.58 |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
Better-than-expected data in the US services sector and higher demand for safe haven assets drove the greenback on Wednesday. ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI rose to 55.0, beating expectations and signalling continued expansion in the services sector in the US. But the slower pace of employment in the sector may be a signal that December’s payrolls may not grow as much as expected.
Gold continued to gain momentum, rising to 1574.37 while the yen retreated against the dollar on Tuesday. US Treasuries mostly fell, with benchmark 10-year yields rising slightly by 1bp to 1.82%.
| Safe Haven Assets |
Change (%) |
Net Change |
Closing Price |
| Gold |
0.55% |
8.63 |
1,574.37 |
| Silver |
1.40% |
0.25 |
17.95 |
| JPY |
-0.06% |
-0.07 |
108.44 |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
| US Treasury yields |
Change (bps) |
Yield (%) |
| 2-Year |
0 |
1.54% |
| 10-Year |
1 |
1.82% |
| 30-Year |
2 |
2.31% |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
Oil prices ended Tuesday’s session lower but spiked on Wednesday morning after the Pentagon confirmed that Iran had fired a series of rockets at two US-Iraqi airbases in the morning. WTI Crude Oil futures surged 4.31% to US$65.46 per barrel as of 8.24am (GMT +8).
| Oil Futures |
Change (%) |
Net Change |
Closing Price |
| Brent Crude |
-0.93% |
-0.64 |
68.27 |
| WTI Crude |
-0.90% |
-0.57 |
62.70 |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
Major indices in Asia fell on Wednesday morning as well thanks to news of Iran's attack. The Nikkei, KOSPI and ASX200 indices all started lower and continued to fall in the morning. US equity futures were lower as well, signalling that global stocks look set for losses on Wednesday.
| Asia |
Change (%) |
Net Change |
Last Price |
As of (GMT +8) |
| Nikkei Index |
-1.98% |
-467.86 |
23,107.86 |
8:11:20 AM |
| KOSPI Index |
-1.30% |
-28.20 |
2,147.34 |
8:31:20 AM |
| ASX200 Index |
-0.86% |
-59.04 |
6,767.40 |
8:31:06 AM |
| Hang Seng Futures |
-0.24% |
-68.00 |
28,314.00 |
2:59:56 AM |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
| US Futures |
Change (%) |
Net Change |
Last Price |
As of (GMT +8) |
| Dow Futures |
-0.96% |
-275.00 |
28,247.00 |
8:06:10 AM |
| S&P500 Futures |
-1.04% |
-33.75 |
3,201.25 |
8:06:08 AM |
| Nasdaq Futures |
-1.20% |
-106.25 |
8,747.00 |
8:06:09 AM |
| *Source: Bloomberg |
Macro events for the day ahead (all timings are in GMT +8):
- Germany Nov Factory Orders (3pm)
- US Dec ADP Employment Change (9.15pm)