Musk threatens Apple with legal action over App Store bias towards OpenAI
* Asian stock markets : https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Nikkei up 0.9% early, still down sharply for week
* WHO confident China steps will contain virus
* Amazon surges 11% as sales beat expectations
* Market on edge ahead of Jan China PMI reading
By Wayne Cole
SYDNEY, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Asian share markets were praying
for a reprieve at the end of a punishing week as investors
snatched at hopes the coronavirus could be contained, even as
headlines spoke of more cases and deaths.
Sentiment got a timely boost when Amazon's AMZN.O sales
blew past all expectations and sent its stock soaring 11% after
hours, adding over $100 billion in market worth. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS inched up 0.1%, but was still down 4.1% on the
week so far. Its 2.3% dive on Thursday had been the sharpest
one-day loss in six months.
Japan's Nikkei .N225 added 0.9%, but again was off 2.7%
for the week. E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 ESc1 held steady
having rebounded late Thursday to end up 0.5%.
The World Health Organization declared a global emergency as
people infected by the virus spread to 18 countries.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, said the
greatest worry was the potential for the virus to spread to
countries with weaker health systems. Yet investors took heart from comments that the drastic
steps Beijing was taking would "reverse the tide" and contain
the outbreak.
"Some shorts covered after the director gave the WHO's stamp
of approval to China's aggressive containment effort," said
Stephen Innes, Asia Pacific market strategist at AxiCorp.
"For now, the market's risk lights have shifted from
flickering on red to a steady shade of amber, which could bring
more risk back into play."
Wall Street quickly recouped its losses and ended higher in
the wake of the WHO comments.
The Dow .DJI finished up 0.43%, while the S&P 500 .SPX
gained 0.31% and the Nasdaq .IXIC 0.26%. After the bell,
NASDAQ futures NQc1 pushed 1.3% higher on the Amazon results.
Still, the flow of news on the virus remained bleak with
China's Hubei province reporting deaths from the disease had
risen by 42 to 204 as of the end of Jan. 30. More airlines curtailed flights into and out of China and
companies temporarily closed operations, while Italy became the
latest country to confirm cases of the virus.
A reading on Chinese manufacturing for January is due later
on Friday and could show the early impact on activity, though
the timing of Lunar New Year holidays complicates the picture.
BONDS IN DEMAND
The drum beat of bad news kept safe-haven bonds well bid,
with yields on U.S. 10-year Treasury notes US10YT=RR down 9
basis points for the week so far and near four-month lows.
The yield curve between three-month bills and 10-year notes
had also inverted twice this week, a bearish economic signal.
In currencies, the star performer was sterling which jumped
after the Bank of England confounded market expectations by not
cutting interest rates on Thursday. GBP/
The pound was last at $1.3089 GBP=D3 , a surprisingly
steady performance given this is the day the UK officially
leaves the European Union.
The dollar took a slight knock overnight when data showed
the U.S. economy grew at its slowest annual pace in three years
in 2019 and personal consumption weakened sharply. It was little changed on the yen early Friday at 108.92
JPY= , while the euro was steady at $1.1030. Against a basket
of currencies, the dollar was stuck at 97.864 .DXY .
The dollar has fared much better against emerging market
currencies as investors ran from risk. EMRG/FRX
Spot gold was up 0.2% for the week at $1,574.53 per ounce
XAU= , but had failed to get much of a safe-haven bid as a
range of other commodities, from copper to iron ore, had been
hammered by worries about Chinese demand.
Oil was another casualty, hitting its lowest in three months
as the global spread of the coronavirus threatened to curb
demand for fuel. O/R
Some short covering early on Friday saw U.S. crude CLc1
regain 75 cents to $52.89 a barrel.
Asia stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Asia-Pacific valuations https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dr2BQA
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(Editing by Sam Holmes)