PremiumIndian indices may witness a flat to negative start on Monday. Last week, the indices registered losses overall after shedding around 1.23% on Friday, spooked by US Fed chief Jerome Powell's hawkish statement, and poor results posted by heavyweights Infosys and HDFC Bank. Experts feel the markets are likely to favour bears this week as well and could see high volatility, with rising inflation, high crude prices, and Q4 results being the key drags. On Friday, the Wall Street tumbled over 2.5% as earnings news and Powell's comments soured the mood of the investors. Indices in Asia fell on Monday, tracking Wall Street's fall on worries over higher interest rates. Shares declined in Japan, South Korea, Australia, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.
Stocks, U.S. futures and commodities sank Monday as investors weigh China’s worsening Covid situtation and the potential for more aggressive interest-rate increases dragging on growth. Treasury yields retreated.
A sell-off deepened in Asia, where MSCI Inc.’s Asia-Pacific gauge fell for the sixth session in seven with declines in Japan, Hong Kong and China. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures contracts dropped in a sign of further weakness as traders ratchet up expectations for steep policy tightening to tame inflation.
Treasuries paused the rout of the past week that roiled markets trying to gauge how high yields can go. The dollar extended an advance as investors opted for safe havens. Crude fell below $100 a barrel -- after sliding for the third week in four -- as China lockdowns amplify demand fears.
Oil pushed lower at the start of the week on concerns that a spreading Covid-19 outbreak in China will weigh on global demand.
West Texas Intermediate futures dropped more than 2% to trade below $100 a barrel after capping a weekly decline. Shanghai reported record daily deaths over the weekend, while authorities in Beijing warned the virus was silently spreading. The world’s biggest crude importer is heading for the worst oil demand shock this month since the early days of the coronavirus.
China’s travails with Covid-19 add another source of volatility to an oil market that’s been whipsawed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The war has fanned inflation, and the European Union is discussing measures to restrict oil imports from Russia. That could tighten the market and drive prices higher.
Tokyo stocks opened lower on Monday after Wall Street shares plunged on anxiety over higher interest rates.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 1.53 percent, or 414.57 points, at 26,690.69 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was down 1.58 percent, or 30.16 points, at 1,874.99.
"Japanese shares are seen starting with falls, following declines in the US market," where worries over interest-rate hikes dampened investor sentiment, said senior analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama of Monex.
The dollar fetched 128.63 yen in early Asian trade, against 128.51 yen in New York late Friday.
Global stock markets dropped sharply ahead of the weekend as the latest hawkish commentary from the Federal Reserve sent investors fleeing equities.
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