(Bloomberg) — The dollar rose, weighing on Asian shares as risk appetite stayed subdued given the prospect of less aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.
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The greenback strengthened against all Group-of-10 currencies, as 10-year Treasury yields extended gains after topping 4.2% for the first time since July earlier this week. Joining a global bond selloff, yields on Japan’s 40-year sovereign notes also rose to the highest in 16 years.
A gauge of Asian equities shed 0.2%, amid declines in Japan and modest gains in South Korea. US futures edged lower. Hong Kong and mainland Chinese shares were outliers, rising after a top government-linked think tank called on authorities to issue 2 trillion yuan ($281 billion) of special government bonds to help create a market stabilization fund.
The broader lackluster performance of equities comes as investors have pared back bets on rapid policy easing, on signs that the US economy remains robust and concerns about wider fiscal deficits after the presidential election. Most Fed officials speaking earlier this week signaled they favor a slower tempo of rate reductions.
“Asia is mostly on its back foot,” said Vishnu Varathan, Asia head of economics and strategy for Mizuho Bank. “USD is dominating against a backdrop of Fed speak suggesting more gradual cuts, IMF revisions suggesting relative US exceptionalism holding up, and the absence of follow-through bulls in China.”
Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan was among the latest to join the monetary policy debate, urging Fed policymakers to be measured in the magnitude of interest-rate reductions.
The International Monetary Fund lowered its global growth forecast for next year and warned of accelerating risks from wars to trade protectionism, even as it credited central banks for taming inflation without sending nations into recession.
Back in Asia, two stock listings were in the spotlight. Tokyo Metro Co.’s shares rose as much as 47% in their debut, after the company raised 348.6 billion yen ($2.3 billion) in the country’s largest initial public offering since mobile carrier SoftBank Corp. listed in 2018. In Hong Kong, China Resources Beverage Holdings Co. gained 14%, showing strong response to one of the city’s biggest initial public offerings this year.
