Asia markets mixed after Fed raises rates and hints hikes could end

India’s banking system is very robust given its diverse debt structure and loan book among other factors, the National Bank of India told CNBC.

“If you look at the debt structure, it is quite diversified and more retail than our country. Apart from that, in terms of loans, it is also very well diversified,” said Dinesh Kumar Kalla, chairman of the bank. told CNBC. Cherry Kang.

“I think the Indian banking system is very resilient,” he said, adding that India’s “regulatory oversight is very tight.”

Kahla added that he has not seen any spillover effects from the impact of US and European banks, noting that many Indian start-ups are starting to rely on Indian banks to sustain their defaults.

Furthermore, SBI forecasts that the loan book will see “decent growth” on the back of India’s growing economy.

“With the Indian economy poised for decent growth, we expect the banking system to follow much the same trend next year,” he said.

— Li Yingxiang

Australia’s trade surplus was A$15.27 billion ($10.2 billion) in March, up from the A$14.15 billion recorded in February. government data shown on Thursday.

A Reuters poll showed the figure had beaten expectations of a decline to A$12.65 billion in March.

The country’s Bureau of Statistics said exports rose 3.8% month-on-month to A$59.3 billion, led by metal ores and minerals.

Imports increased by 2.5% month-on-month to A$44.02 billion, mainly driven by non-industrial transport equipment.

— Lim Hijie

China’s manufacturing activity fell into contraction territory for the first time in three months. Caixin Manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index was 49.5 in April, below estimates.

The number also marks a decline from March’s 50.0 level, reflecting a reduction in new orders.

“This is after Covid-19 infections peaked earlier this year, given that the February and March indices were 51.6 and 50 respectively,” said Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group, in a release. , suggesting that China’s economic recovery has slowed significantly.” .

Still, the company is confident that demand will recover by the end of the year.

“Manufacturers are highly optimistic, with forecasts for future output in April significantly higher than long-term averages, demonstrating strong confidence in the recovery of market demand and the implementation of related supportive policies,” said Wang. said.

— Lee Ji-hye

China’s domestic tourist arrivals surged 70.8% year-on-year during Golden Week, returning to pre-pandemic levels, according to Reuters.

“Strong data on Labor Day holiday travel bode well for a recovery in consumption and services in the months ahead, with 2023 GDP growth above consensus,” Goldman Sachs economists said in a note Thursday. It adds confidence to the forecast,” the company said.

Citi’s chief China economist, Xiangrong Yu, said the rise in prices was worth watching closely.

“As supply capacity in certain sectors is starting to reach its limits, we tend to think that further demand growth could lead to employment and inflationary pressure,” he said, noting that China’s recovery so far is not inflationary. I pointed out that no

HSBC added that the Chinese tourist recovery still has a long way to go.

“If you think China’s travel recovery is over, we think it’s just the beginning,” they wrote in a note Wednesday.

— Lee Ji-hye

Asia-Pacific currencies rose against the dollar as the US Federal Reserve signaled a possible end to the rate hike cycle.

The offshore Chinese yuan rose 0.3% against the dollar to 6.900 on Thursday morning as the dollar index fell 0.24% to 101.102.

The Korean won gained 0.6% against the dollar to 1,326.84, while the Japanese yen gained 0.13% against the US dollar to 134.49. The Australian dollar remained flat and the New Zealand dollar rose 0.24% against the dollar to 0.6240.

— Lee Ji-hye

Shares of the major Australian bank fell on Thursday after National Australia Bank underperformed earnings expectations for the first half of the year ended March.

Revenue was A$10.53 billion ($7.0 billion), up 19.3% year-on-year and net profit was A$3.97 billion, up 11.7% year-on-year. NAB said.

Refinitiv data showed NAB’s revenue was 2% below estimates and earnings per share were 5.61% below estimates. Meanwhile, net profit was 2.31% higher than expected.

Shares of NAB fell 7.57% on Thursday, while its counterparts Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Banking also fell 2.84% and 4.24% respectively. Macquarie Group fell 2.22%.

China’s Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers’ index is expected to remain in expansion territory in April, according to a Reuters poll by economists.

Polls predict it will rise to 50.3 in April after hitting 50.0 in March.

This comes after China’s National Bureau of Statistics released manufacturing PMI data over the weekend was a disappointment, falling below the 50 mark separating growth and contraction at 49.2.

— Lee Ji-hye

As widely expected, the Fed hiked rates for the 10th time in this tightening cycle. The central bank also hinted that a moratorium on campaigns could come.

“In determining the extent to which additional policy enhancements are appropriate to gradually bring inflation back to 2%, the Committee considered the cumulative tightening of monetary policy, the impact of monetary policy on economic activity and inflation “It takes into account lag, economic activity and economic activity. Financial conditions,” the Fed said in a statement.

The Fed also removed a sentence from its previous announcement that said, “The Commission expects additional policy enhancements to be appropriate to help the Fed reach its 2% inflation target.”

For more information, see the Fed Live Blog on CNBC.

— Fred Imbert, Jeff Cox

Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s Andrew Slimmon says it’s time to buy “aggressive” stocks.

“I think it’s very dangerous to own only very defensive stocks. I think you need to have some offensive stuff in your portfolio,” Slimmon said on CNBC’s Squawk Box Asia on Tuesday.

He explains why and gives stocks to buy.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Tan Weizhen

Germany’s Volkswagen and BMW are due to release first-quarter earnings on Thursday.

Using five-year-old data from FactSet, CNBC Pro assessed how well automaker stocks perform against benchmark indices based on a range of quarterly earnings reports.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

The Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar’s performance against six other world currencies, fell more than 0.7% on Wednesday to a session low of 101.07. It was the lowest level since April 16.

The move comes as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell answers questions following the central bank’s latest policy decisions.

— Fred Imbert, Gina Francola

WTI crude oil (JUN) fell 3.07% to a low of $69.46 as of 7:28 am ET on Wednesday. This marked the lowest price level for WTI crude since March 27, when it traded as low as $69.13.

WTI crude is down nearly 9.5% in the week to date, its worst weekly pace since March 17, when it fell nearly 13%.

The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) is down 6.6% for the week, its worst weekly pace since March 17, when it fell 6.85%. Energy groups Halliburton and Exxon Mobil fell 10.4% and 8.4% respectively this week.

— Kim Ha Kyung, Gina Francola