Stock Market Update

The S&P 500 futures currently trade 17 points above fair value. 

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended Thursday on a higher note with South Korea's Kospi (+2.7%) reaching a fresh record while markets in China and India were closed for holidays. The outperformance in South Korea was supported by strength in Samsung and SK Hynix after they announced a deal with OpenAI. Shipper Maersk said that China's container shipments to Latin America, Africa, and Europe increased markedly while shipments to North America are down about 15% yr/yr. Japan's Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi is reportedly a slight favorite to win Saturday's LDP leadership vote.

• In economic data:
  • Japan's September Monetary Base -6.1% yr/yr (expected -3.8%; last -4.1%). September Household Confidence 35.3 (expected 35.1; last 34.9)
  • South Korea's September CPI 0.5% m/m (expected 0.4%; last -0.1%); 2.1% yr/yr (expected 2.0%; last 1.7%)
  • Hong Kong's August Retail Sales 3.8% yr/yr (last 1.8%)
  • Australia's August trade surplus AUD1.825 bln (expected surplus of AUD6.130 bln; last surplus of AUD6.612 bln)

---Equity Markets---

• Japan's Nikkei: +0.9%
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng: +1.6%
• China's Shanghai Composite: HOLIDAY
• India's Sensex: HOLIDAY
• South Korea's Kospi: +2.7%
• Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: +1.1%

Major European indices trade in the green while the U.K.'s FTSE (unch) lags after hitting a fresh record high earlier in the session. British food retailer Tesco increased its guidance while discount air carrier Ryanair reported strong metrics for September. The British government may exempt new listings on the London Stock Exchange from paying stamp duty amid growing concerns about falling competitiveness of British markets. There was some speculation that the Swiss National Bank could cut its policy rate into negative territory after cool September CPI.

• In economic data:
  • Eurozone's August Unemployment Rate 6.3% (expected 6.2%; last 6.2%)
  • France's August government budget deficit EUR157.5 bln (last deficit of EUR142.0 bln)
  • Italy's August Unemployment Rate 6.0%, as expected (last 5.9%)
  • Spain's September Unemployment Change -4,800 (expected 15,400; last 21,900)
  • Swiss September CPI -0.2% m/m, as expected (last -0.1%); 0.2% yr/yr (expected 0.3%; last 0.2%)

---Equity Markets---

• STOXX Europe 600: +0.8%
• Germany's DAX: +1.2%
• U.K.'s FTSE 100: UNCH
• France's CAC 40: +1.3%
• Italy's FTSE MIB: +0.2%
• Spain's IBEX 35: +0.1%