S&P 500 — US Large Cap Index
FTSE 100 — UK Blue Chips
Euro Stoxx 50 — Eurozone Leaders
DAX 40 — German Equities
CAC 40 — French Market Index
Nikkei 225 — Japan Benchmark
Hang Seng — Hong Kong Index
Shanghai Composite — China Mainland
ASX 200 — Australian Market
TSX Composite — Canada Index
Nifty 50 — India Large Cap
STI Index — Singapore Market
KOSPI — South Korea Index
Bovespa — Brazil Equities
JSE Top 40 — South Africa Index
IPC Index — Mexico Market
Indices and Companies
- Futures on main US indices have slowed significantly and are trading flat ( US100 : -0.05%; US500 : +0.02%) following a fade in volatility generated by Nvidia’s earnings (+8.5% yesterday). Stagnation dominates the session for now, with investors holding their breath ahead of the Fed’s Jackson Hole symposium, where all attention will focus on comments from Kevin Warsh.
- Sentiment in Asia is mixed and trading volumes are muted as investors await Warsh’s speech today. South Korea performed worst in the region (KOSPI: -1.3%) due to waning tech enthusiasm following Nvidia’s results (SK Hynix: -1.5%, Samsung: -2.5%). Japan outperformed the region (Nikkei 225: +0.6%), while Chinese markets (Hang Seng and HSCEI: +0.4%) and Australia (S&P/ASX: +0.5%) are also trading slightly in the green.
🌍 Economy and Geopolitics
- Tokyo CPI inflation unexpectedly accelerated to 1.8% YoY in August (previous and consensus: 1.7%), while the core-core index (excluding fresh food and energy) rose to 2.0%. The data reflects slowing food price growth, a broader pass-through of energy costs creating pressure across the economy, and yen weakness. The unemployment rate also fell (from 2.5% to 2.4%). Markets slightly raised expectations for a BOJ interest rate hike in September, with the data supporting recent hawkish comments from BOJ officials.
- A Reuters poll revealed that 27 out of 31 surveyed economists expect a second consecutive rate hike in New Zealand in September (to 2.75%).
- The commander of United States Central Command reported that recognized international transit routes through the Strait of Hormuz have been cleared of Iranian naval mines.
💱 Currencies and Commodities
- On FX, a similar decline in volatility is visible, with movements across most G10 currency pairs not exceeding 0.1%. The exception is the New Zealand dollar ( NZDUSD : +0.2%), supported by hawkish expectations among economists. The yen is losing ground despite higher-than-expected inflation ( USDJPY : +0.12%). The Dollar Index is adding a modest 0.05%. EURUSD is trading flat at 1.1644.
- Precious metals are giving back most of yesterday’s gains. Gold is down 0.5% to $4,580 per ounce, and silver is losing 0.6% to $68.80 per ounce.
- Brent crude futures are pulling back by a modest 0.5% to $88.10 per barrel, while natural gas continues its gains both in Europe ( NATGAS.EU : +0.7%) and on NYMEX ( NATGAS : +0.3%).
🪙 Crypto
- Crypto markets are experiencing moderate profit-taking ahead of Jackson Hole. Bitcoin is down 0.45%, falling back below $80,000 ($79,930). Ethereum is losing 0.4% to $2,497.
