Asian markets mixed as more US inflation data comes in softer than expected

Reserve Bank of Australia Deputy Governor Michele Bullock has been appointed as the new central bank governor, the country’s finance minister said on Friday.

She succeeds the incumbent Philip Lowe, whose term ends on August 17 – approaching his 43rd year at the bank. Treasurer Jim Chalmers described Bullock’s appointment as “the optimal balance between providing exceptional experience and expertise and offering a fresh leadership perspective.”[ads1];

Bullock’s appointment will mean the RBA will have a vacant deputy governor position, which the government said it will fill in the coming months.

– Lim Hui Jie

Federal Reserve Board Governor Christopher Waller expressed the need for two more rate hikes to bring inflation down to target.

“I see two more 25 basis point increases in the target range over the four remaining meetings this year as necessary to keep inflation moving toward our target,” he said at an event at New York University on Thursday.

He called the latest CPI reading showing a cooling rate of inflation as “welcome” news, while adding: “one data point does not constitute a trend.”

“I will need to see this improvement sustained before I am confident that inflation has abated,” he said.

– Jihye Lee

The fund manager behind a bond fund offering 10% in dividends has predicted a “credit deterioration” for the wider economy in the near future.

However, the portfolio manager expects the fund to be well positioned for such a scenario, while generating market-beating income.

It is among only a handful of funds available to retail investors across Europe currently offering double-digit returns.

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– Ganesh Rao

Bank of America has described the AI ​​opportunity in the software industry as “undoubtedly huge” and ranked European companies in the sector.

“We see gen AI as an opportunity for the software industry to achieve both potential revenue growth via improved value proposition and data monetization, along with productivity improvements,” the bank said.

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– Lucy Handley

The producer price index, a measure of what wholesalers pay for goods, rose 0.1% in June. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected an increase of 0.2 percent. Core PPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, climbed 0.1% – also less than expected.

— Fred Imbert

In another bullish sign for the market, the S&P 500 is now up 3.3% since the Fed began raising interest rates in March 2022. The move comes as traders cheer the prospect of the central bank taming inflation without tipping the economy into recession.

“For the first time in 2023, we are currently being asked by several clients whether we believe the S&P 500 is now on track to clock an ATH before year-end. I say yes to this,” Goldman Sachs’ John Flood wrote in a note Wednesday.

— Fred Imbert

The St. Louis Federal Reserve announced Thursday that Jim Bullard will step down as president effective Aug. 14.

The bank said he is leaving to take the position of dean at Purdue University’s Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, with effect from 15 August. It also added that Bullard has “resigned from his monetary policy role on the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee and other related duties and has ceased all public speaking.”

“It has been both a privilege and an honor to be a part of the St. Louis Fed for the past 33 years, including serving as its president for the past 15 years,” Bullard said in a statement. “I am also grateful to have worked alongside such dedicated and inspiring colleagues across the Federal Reserve System.”

Bullard is not a voting member of the political committee this year.

— Fred Imbert

Nearly 2.4 stocks advanced Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange for every 1 decline, and forward volume approached 71% versus less than 29% declining volume, according to FactSet data. New NYSE highs total 167 versus just 11 new lows.

On the Nasdaq stock market, almost 2 stocks rise for every 1 that falls, and up volume is a shade less than 73%, far exceeding down volume which equates to less than 27%. The Nasdaq’s new highs amount to 256 against only 52 new lows.

– Scott Snapper