Markets Overview

  • ASX SPI 200 futures up 0.4% to 7,475.00
  • Dow Average up 0.4% to 35,208.51
  • Aussie down 0.6% to 0.7361 per US$
  • U.S. 10-year yield rose 7.4bps to 1.2969%
  • Australia 3-year bond yield rose 3bps to 0.30%
  • Australia 10-year bond yield rose 3bps to 1.19%
  • Gold spot down 2.3% to $1,763.03
  • Brent futures down 0.8% to $70.70/bbl

Economic Events

  • 4:30pm: (AU) July Foreign Reserves, prior A$64.7b

Asian stocks are set to start the week steady after a better-than-expected increase in U.S. payrolls fueled expectations that the Federal Reserve is moving closer to a pullback of stimulus.
Futures rose in Australia, but they fell in Hong Kong earlier. Japan markets are closed for a holiday. On Friday, the S&P 500 climbed to a record, led by financials and materials, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 fell. U.S. job growth accelerated in July by the most in almost a year and the unemployment rate declined, illustrating momentum in the labor market as it grapples with hiring challenges.
The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 1.3% and the dollar strengthened against major peers. Cash Treasuries won’t trade in Asia because of the holiday in Tokyo.

Other News

New Jersey is sprucing up highway rest stops by naming them after famous Garden State celebrities like Whitney Houston and Jon Bon Jovi, but there’s one glaring omission – The Boss. The revamped rest stops also include bathroom breaks devoted to “Sopranos” star James Gandolfini and Frank Sinatra. The names were approved for National New Jersey Day Tuesday and the Garden State Parkway areas will also include “Hard Rock Café-style exhibits.” Rock legend Bruce Springsteen was left out of the strange honor — but it was no oversight. “Bruce Springsteen respectfully declined to have a service area named after him,” Natasha Alagarasan, a spokeswoman for the New Jersey Hall of Fame, told northjersey.com. “It should be noted, though, that Bruce has been very supportive of the New Jersey Hall of Fame over the years, and is very much a part of the fabric of the Hall.” Springsteen had a run-in with local enforcement in his home state last year, when he took a pit stop while riding his motorcycle in a Sandy Hook park and did “two small shots” of tequila with some fans at Gateway National Recreation Area. Earlier this year, prosecutors dropped DWI and reckless driving charges against the Boss for the incident because he wasn’t drunk, but he pleaded guilty to a count of drinking in a closed area – and had to pay a $540 fine.