Middle East Weighs On The Middle Kingdom

Key News

Asian equities, despite US involvement/escalation concerns in the Middle East, were mixed, led higher by Japan, Taiwan, and surging South Korea, while Hong Kong, Thailand, and Pakistan underperformed.

The US dollar finally showed its reserve currency status outperforming most Asian currencies except for the Yen and Singapore dollar. It was an interesting divergence in the region as Hong Kong growth stocks underperformed for the second day in a row on light volumes, indicating investors’ limited risk appetite against the geopolitical backdrop.

Fairly uneventful risk off night with little news, except for Mainland investors buying the Hong Kong dip with $158 million of net buying as Southbound Stock Connect trading accounted for 53% of Hong Kong turnover. Following a morning selloff, the Mainland market managed to grind higher, led by growth stocks, with electronic equipment and communication equipment providers outperforming.

Mainland media noted that several consumption policies had been suspended. The issue is that demand has exceeded the government’s release of RMB 162 billion of the RMB 300 billion raised through the sale of long-term Treasury bonds. Further funds will flow over the course of the year, indicating strong demand, i.e., a good thing!

The Lujiazui Forum kicked off today in Shanghai, with announcements from the heads of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), State Administration of Foreign Exchange, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC). The CSRC’s speech on reforming and enhancing the STAR Board included allowing “innovative unprofitable companies” to go public in order to raise funds to spur their R&D. Today’s Forum focus was on the renminbi as currency trading, digital currency, and promotion were a priority. Hopefully, we see a reemphasis on shareholder-friendly policies promoted, including buybacks, corporate governance, and M&A in tomorrow’s session. The emphasis on the STAR Board explains its outperformance today.

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