Markets Overview

  • ASX SPI 200 futures up 0.2% to 6,476.00
  • Dow Average down 0.8% to 30,775.43
  • Aussie up 0.3% to 0.6904 per US$
  • U.S. 10-year yield fell 7.7bps to 3.0129%
  • Australia 3-year bond yield fell 8bps to 3.12%
  • Australia 10-year bond yield fell 3bps to 3.66%
  • Gold spot down 0.6% to $1,807.33
  • Brent futures down 1.2% to $114.81/bbl

Economic Events

  • 9am: (AU) June S&P Global Australia PMI Mfg, prior 55.8
  • 4:30pm: (AU) June Commodity Index SDR YoY, prior 30.4%
  • 4:30pm: (AU) June Commodity Index AUD, prior 155.0

Stocks in Asia looked set for a cautious start on Friday as concerns about an economic slowdown bolster sovereign bonds.

Futures edged up for Japan and Australia, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts dipped after US shares posted their worst first half since 1970.

Hong Kong’s markets are closed for a holiday marking the 25th anniversary of Chinese rule. President Xi Jinping is expected to give a speech later Friday.

Chinese shares are one of the few bright spots in global markets, following a recent rally that’s taken the CSI 300 Index to the cusp of a bull market. Easing Covid curbs and brighter economic data have contributed to the rebound.

Treasury yields sank Thursday as softer than expected consumer spending and inflation bolstered the view that sharp Federal Reserve rate hikes will spark recession. The 10-year yield briefly fell below 3% before closing just above.

A gauge of the dollar retreated. Crude held losses on economic growth concerns.

Other News

For the third time since the end of May, a bison gored a tourist at Yellowstone National Park, the National Park Service said Thursday.

The attack on the 71-year-woman — also the second goring this week — occurred Wednesday near Storm Point at Yellowstone Lake in the Wyoming section of the park. The others occurred May 30 and this past Monday near the Old Faithful geyser.

The latest victim and her daughter “inadvertently approached the bison as they were returning to their vehicle at the trailhead, causing the bull bison to charge,” the park service said. Her injuries were “non-life-threatening,” officials reported.

A bison can charge at up 35 mph (56 kph). If a person gets too close, “they may respond by bluff charging, head bobbing, pawing, bellowing, or snorting,” the park service said. “These are warning signs that you are too close and that a charge is imminent.”