Key Points:
- Asian Stock Gauge Drops Amid Rise in Yields, Crude
- S&P 500 slid most in two months on jitters over Fed rate hikes
- Chinese equities get a prop from steps to ease property woes
Stocks retreated in Asia on Tuesday amid worries about Federal Reserve monetary tightening that have also boosted bond yields. Oil topped $91 a barrel after Saudi Arabia said OPEC+ may be forced to cut output.
MSCI Inc.’s Asia-Pacific equity index slipped to a near four-week low as Japan shed about 1%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures stabilized, eking out gains after slumps of more than 2% in both indexes on Monday.
The Fed’s brake on the US economy to ensure high inflation keeps cooling remains the key wider driver in global markets. Traders are bracing for hawkish talk at the central bank’s Jackson Hole symposium later this week.
Treasuries held an overnight selloff, with the 10-year yield now above 3%. Australian and New Zealand bonds fell. The dollar was steady and the euro near a two-decade low.
Powell and his colleagues at the Fed are walking a tightrope, trying to contain price pressures while averting recession. At the same time, global growth risks span Europe’s energy crisis to China’s property and Covid troubles.
Elsewhere, Bitcoin found its footing but is about $2,000 off levels that prevailed before a crypto swoon on Aug. 19.