The overnight pullback on risk markets in the wake of the Trump “diplomacy” over North Korea has translated into similar moves here in Asia, although Japanese stocks fared better than expected as Yen weakened against USD throughout the session. The weaker USD is keeping commodities steady, including gold and the Aussie dollar.
The Shanghai Composite is still in a slump, falling nearly 0.4% to close at 3141 points to close out a very disappointing week after its feint above resistance at 3200 points. The Hang Seng Index fell about the same to close at 30615. Price is now right on the low moving average on the daily chart at 30600 which must hold going into next week or the low 30000’s or that level outright will be reached:
S&P futures are up slightly as are EuroStoxx futures so with some luck we could see the recent highs at just below 2740 come under threat, unless Trump puts his foot into the Korean imbroglio again:
Japanese stocks ended the week with a scratch session with the Nikkei 225 up only a few points to close at 22450, still right on trailing ATR support and ready to capitulate. The USDJPY pair has come back ever so slightly as price decelerates into a possible bottom here at the 109 handle. I’m watching the high moving average at the 109.70 for signs of a possible rebound:
The ASX200 had another scratch session, losing only a handful of points to close about 0.1% lower at 6032 with key support at 6000 holding for now. The Aussie dollar has retreated a little in late trade to be at the mid 75 level against USD after a failed attempt at getting above the high moving average on the four hourly chart. I’m still watching for a potential follow through here tonight as the short/medium term trend remains up:
The economic calendar finishes the week with three major releases to keep an eye on. First, its Q1 GDP for the UK, then US durable good orders and finally a speech by Fed Chair Powell on financial instability.