Sydney - The dollar slumped after Donald Trump in his
first days in office offered little news on his plans to boost growth
while stirring concerns over protectionism. Metals and Asian shares outside of
Japan rose.
The US currency fell against its major peers and gold
added to a four-week advance. Japan’s Topix index fell on the strengthening yen
as Asian traders reacted for the first time to Trump’s
inauguration. Shares in mainland China and Taiwan climbed. Copper paced
gains among industrial metals as the US president reiterated plans to
rebuild infrastructure.
Trump began work as US president after saying he’d place
American interests at the forefront of his agenda. His pro-growth
campaign-trail pronouncements helped drive a rally in equities since November,
while the dollar surged and bonds slumped. Some of those trades are unwinding
this month as investors assess whether those moves had pushed prices too far,
too fast. Money managers will be dissecting earnings from some of the world’s
largest companies this week with Alphabet Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. and
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. all reporting results.
“Markets are now waiting for more evidence that Donald
Trump will deliver on fiscal stimulus and deregulation,” said Shane Oliver,
Sydney-based global investment strategist at AMP Capital Investor, which
manages about $120 billion. “Shares remain vulnerable to a further correction
or consolidation in the next month or so.”
Here are the main
moves in markets:
Currencies
The yen rose 1.1 percent to 113.33 per dollar as of 3:04
p.m. in Tokyo. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index slid 0.6 percent. It has fallen
for four straight weeks, its longest retreat since February. The dollar lost
0.7 percent against the South African rand and 0.8 percent versus the Mexican
peso.
Commodities
Gold rose 0.5 percent to $1,216.62 an ounce. The metal
has increased in 10 of the past 11 sessions. West-Texas Intermediate crude oil
was down 0.1 percent at $53.20. Copper futures jumped 1.5 percent in London and
aluminum added 0.8 percent to the highest since May 2015. Lead and zinc rose at
least 1.1 percent after Trump reiterated plans to rebuild U.S. infrastructure.
Iron ore dropped 2.1 percent, bringing its four-day decline to almost 5
percent. Iron ore is headed for a sharp decline as higher-grade supplies from
Brazil and Australia are set to increase, according to Citigroup Inc.
Stocks
The Shanghai Composite rose 0.3 percent, while the Hang
Seng index was little changed, paring an intraday advance of 0.8 percent.
Taiwan’s Taiex index climbed 1 percent. Japan’s Topix Index lost 1.2 percent,
its first decline in four days, led by exporters. India’s S&P BSE Sensex
increased 0.4 percent, rebounding from Friday’s 1 percent drop. Australia’s
S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.8 percent, after sliding 1.2 percent last
week. The gauge reached the highest since May 2015 earlier this month. Contracts
on the S&P 500 Index declined 0.3 percent Monday after the gauge advanced
0.3 percent on Friday.
Bonds
10-year Treasury yields declined 3 basis points to 2.441
percent. The yield on 10-year Australian government bonds lost 3 basis points
to 2.76 percent.
BLOOMBERG