Asian Stocks Track US Peers Lower as Yields Climb: Markets Wrap
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Asian stocks and bonds fell Thursday, mirroring declines in the US, after another weak sale of Treasuries reinforced concerns about the impact of higher yields. Shares in Australia and South Korea dropped, while those in Japan declined over 1% at the open. Futures contracts for US equities also slipped in early Asian trading after the S&P 500 ended Wednesday back below 5,300, while the Nasdaq 100 had its worst day since May 1. Rising Treasury yields have driven the dollar higher, in turn hitting the Japanese and Chinese currencies this week. A gauge of dollar strength steadied Thursday after jumping to a two-week high in its previous session. The yen weakened as much as 0.3% to beyond 157.50 per dollar on Wednesday, where Japan’s government was suspected to have intervened to trigger a rapid rally in the currency in late trading. The onshore yuan fell to the lowest level since November as the People’s Bank of China let it decline against a resilient dollar through a weaker daily reference rate. Emerging Asian currencies, including South Korea’s won and Malaysia’s ringgit, extended their weakness. Elsewhere, South Africa’s rand weakened 0.4% against the dollar Thursday as the country went to polls to elect its next parliament and government. In commodities, oil was steady after retreating on Wednesday, with broader risk-off sentiment offsetting heightened tensions in the Middle East before an OPEC+ supply meeting on Sunday. Treasury 10-year yields climbed six basis points to 4.61% on Wednesday. European bonds also tumbled, sending yields to multi-month highs after inflation in Germany quickened more than expected, denting bets on a faster pace of rate cuts.

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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-29/stock-market-today-dow-s-p-live-updates