Morning Ticker for March 2, 2023: America Red, Asia Mixed, Tax Neutral, Cryptos, Oil and Gold Lower

XTB: US indices ended the first trading day of the new month mostly in the red. While the Dow Jones and Russell 2000 ended more or less unchanged, the S&P 500 fell nearly 0.5% and the Nasdaq fell more than 0.6%.

– The weak performance of US equity indices was accompanied by a further rise in US yields. The 10-year government bond yield rose above 4% for the first time since November 2022.

– Asia-Pacific indices traded mixed today. The Nikkei fell 0.1%, the Nifty 50 fell 0.3%, the S&P/ASX 200 was flat and the Kospi rose 0.6%. China indices traded 0.1-0.8% lower.

– DAX futures opened flat in the European session today.

– Reuters reports that Chinese authorities may set a GDP growth target of 6% for 2023, up from the 4.5-5.5% range proposed in November. The target is expected to be announced on Sunday, March 5.

– Australian building permits fell 27.6%m/m in February (-9.2% ex.).

– Japanese capital spending increased by 7.7% in Q4 2022.

– Salesforce ( CRM.US ) shares jumped more than 15% in after-hours trading after the numbers were released. The company reported revenue of $8.38 billion (expected $7.99 billion) and EPS of $1.68 (expected $1.36). Salesforce announced an expansion of its buyback program from $10 billion to $20 billion.

– Cryptocurrencies traded lower on Thursday – Bitcoin down 0.3%, Dogecoin down 1% and Ethereum down 0.5%.

– Energy commodities weakness – Oil fell 0.3% while US natural gas prices fell 0.6%.

– Precious metals fell on a stronger US dollar – gold down 0.2%, platinum down 0.4% and silver down 0.7%.

– USD and CAD are the best performing currencies, while NZD and JPY are the weakest.

US bonds (TNOTE – in blue) continue to decline, putting pressure on Wall Street indices.

US 10-year yields rose above 4% yesterday and S&P 500 futures (US500) are falling below the SMA200 today.