GLOBAL MARKETS 
DJIA         32849.74   92.20   0.28% 
Nasdaq       10547.11    1.08   0.01% 
S&P 500       3821.62    3.96   0.10% 
FTSE 100      7370.62    9.31   0.13% 
Nikkei Stock 26563.20   -4.83  -0.02% 
Hang Seng    19146.27   51.47   0.27% 
Kospi         2338.94    5.65   0.24% 
SGX Nifty*   18508.00   82.00   0.45% 
*Dec contract 
 
USD/JPY 132.12-13  +0.32% 
Range   132.32   131.50 
EUR/USD 1.0613-16  -0.09% 
Range   1.0632   1.0614 
 
CBOT Wheat March $7.504 per bushel 
Spot Gold   $1,817.21/oz Unch 
Nymex Crude (NY) $76.09  $0.90 
 
 
U.S. STOCKS

U.S. stock indexes and bond yields rose Tuesday after the Bank of Japan surprised investors by raising the cap on a benchmark rate, inching away from its ultrarelaxed monetary policies.

The S&P 500 added 3.96 points, or 0.1%, to 3821.62. The Nasdaq Composite rose 1.08 points, or less than 0.1%, to 10547.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 92.20 points, or 0.3%, to 32849.74. 


 
 
ASIAN STOCKS

Japanese stocks were lower in early trade, dragged by declines in real estate and auto stocks, on higher borrowing cost concerns following the Bank of Japan's move to let the yield curve shift higher. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group added 7.6% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group was 5.6% higher following gains in bond yields in Japan and the U.S. Investors remained focused on economic data and their implications for monetary policy. The Nikkei Stock Average was down 0.9% at 26328.19.

South Korea's benchmark Kospi edged 0.1% higher to 2335.47 in early trade, tracking Wall Street's mild gains overnight. Wall Street looked resilient, but risks remain as the BOJ-induced selloff in global bonds may continue to send jitters to risk assets, said CMC Markets. Best performers on Kospi included Orion climbing 4.2%, Kum Yang rising 3.6% and Kakaopay up 1.7%. USD/KRW was up 0.1% at 1,285.44, according to FactSet.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.4% to 19171.28 in early trade, tracking gains on Wall Street overnight. Leaders included financials and healthcare stocks, as investors continued to weigh the impact of monetary tightening on global growth. HSBC was up 1.8%, while Hong Kong Exchanges added 1.7% following the opening of its New York office, which the company said supported its growing global client base. Among the laggards, Sands China dropped 2.4% and Galaxy Entertainment was 0.4% lower.

Chinese shares opened slightly higher in the early trade, recovering somewhat from Tuesday's dive as market sentiment was dragged down by the country's disorderly reopening, which has caused massive Covid outbreaks. Travel stocks and consumption-related companies, were leading the gains. Shares of auto makers and suppliers were lower. ?The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1% to 3078.33, the Shenzhen Composite Index and the ChiNext Price Index were both up 0.1%. 


FOREX

JPY weakened against most G-10 and Asian currencies in the morning Asian session in a likely technical correction following sharp moves on Tuesday driven by BOJ's surprise move to double the 10-year JGB yield cap to 0.50%. While the BOJ's tweak may seem modest or operational to enhance its yield-curve-control effectiveness, markets will keep guessing what the central bank's next move may be and when it might take place, OCBC said. Potential BOJ policy shifts could be conditional on whether trend inflation overshoots and stays above the BOJ's 2% target, it added. USD/JPY rose 0.5% to 132.28, AUD/JPY gained 0.5% to 88.37 and EUR/JPY was up 0.4% at 140.42. 


METALS

Gold was steady in the early Asian session amid mixed developments. A weaker USD, seasonal physical demand and central-bank purchases in gold markets could temporarily offset the widening negative carry of higher global yields, said Stephen Innes, managing partner of SPI Asset Management. Spot gold was little changed at $1,817.21/oz. 


OIL SUMMARY

Oil edged higher in the morning Asian session. The API reported that U.S. commercial inventories of crude oil fell by 3.1 million barrels last week, according to a source citing the data. The results were released ahead of official EIA data due later today. Oil prices have tremendous support at the $70/bbl level as the U.S. will likely be refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for a while, Oanda said. Front-month WTI crude oil futures are 0.2% higher at $76.37/bbl; front-month Brent crude is 0.2% higher at $80.15/bbl. 


 
 
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-20-22 2215ET