Hong Kong, Sep 25 (AP) Asian shares were mixed Friday following another bond sell-off that brought US Treasury yields to their highest in years.
US futures edged higher.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.3 per cent to 66,364.20. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 1.1 per cent to 24,495.35. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.4 per cent to 8,665.00.
India’s Sensex was up less than 0.1 per cent.
Markets in mainland China, Taiwan and South Korea were closed because of a holiday.
Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 was almost unchanged on Thursday, edging down less than 0.1 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.3 per cent, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed less than 0.1 per cent.
A global sell-off in the bond market has again added pressure to the stock market, as the yield on the US 10-year Treasury reached its highest since 2007. The US 10-year Treasury eased slightly to around 5.17 per cent early Friday, after rising above 5.20 per cent on Thursday from around 5.11 per cent Wednesday.
Government bond yields have been elevated as bond investors are demanding higher compensation under increasing risks and uncertainties, including growing inflationary pressure from the Iran war-driven energy shock and rising US government debt.
ING Bank analysts wrote in a commentary this week that factors including elevated energy prices and inflation pressures are likely to continue to pressure US 10-year Treasury yields higher.
Oil prices fell early Friday as investors look for signs of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway for global oil transport. Brent crude, the international standard, dropped 1 per cent to USD 99.24 per barrel, remaining below the USD 100 mark although it’s still well above the roughly USD 72 a barrel level in late February before the start of the war.
While many investors are also monitoring the meeting in Washington between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, analysts said limited concrete progress has been made, although the two sides touched on topics including trade, artificial intelligence and the Middle East.
The US dollar fell to 158.06 Japanese yen from 158.86 yen. The euro was trading at USD 1.1387, up from USD 1.1380.
(PTI News)
