Tech Rises as Treasury Yields Retreat From Peak

Technology shares closed higher and Treasury yields retreated from the highest levels of the day as investors weighed the risk of inflation with economic growth accelerating. The S&P 500 dropped by 0.060% to 3,913.10 while Dow Jones was down 234.33 points (0.71%) to 32,627.97.

US Weighs Global Climate Impact Benchmark for Wall Street

The Biden administration is considering ways to push the global finance industry to consistently account for carbon dioxide emissions and green investments, according to people familiar with the matter. The Treasury Department and US regulators are in the early stages of working on measures to improve companies’ environmental impact disclosure, according to the people.

EU’s Plodding Stirs ECB Concerns as US Delivers Stimulus

The European Union’s path to joint fiscal stimulus is looking less assured than its monetary guardians would like, casting further clouds over an outlook already stunted by the bloc’s botched vaccination drive. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde gave a hint of alarm to lawmakers on the slow rollout of the 750 billion-euro (US$896 billion) pandemic recovery fund, building on the warning of colleagues.

France Sticks to 6% GDP Growth Forecast as Lighter Lockdown Hits

France still sees gross domestic product growth of 6% this year, even after new lockdown measures came into force in Paris and other regions to contain the coronavirus. “I confirm our ambitions to reach 6% growth in 2021,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said in a radio interview on France Inter. The moment when they lift the restrictions, their ability to rebound is said to be extraordinary.

Canadian Retail Sales Bounce Back After Second-wave Lockdown

Canadian retailers got a boost in February after public-health authorities lifted lockdowns. Retail sales rose 4.0% on the month, preliminary data released by Statistics Canada show. The bounce-back comes after a 1.1% drop in receipts in January and a 3.7% decline in December, when many businesses were forced to close because of a second wave of Covid-19.

China Still Has Room to Provide Liquidity to Economy: PBOC Chief

China still has room to pump liquidity into the economy while keeping its leverage ratio stable, People’s Bank of China Governor Yi Gang said. China’s macro-leverage ratio remains at a stable level, Yi said at the China Development Forum in Beijing. “This will not only provide positive incentives for economic players, but also help create an environment less likely to spawn financial risks.” he said.

BOJ Carves Out More Flexibility for Longer Inflation Fight

BOJ unveiled a set of carefully crafted policy tweaks aimed at giving itself more flexibility to keep up its long quest to revive inflation. They set out a wider-thanpreviously-thought movement range for bond yields and scrapped a buying target for stock funds at the end of a three-month policy review. BOJ’s decision to focus its purchasing of exchange-traded funds on the wider Topix index drove down shares on the Nikkei 225.

Oil’s Worst Week in Nearly Five Months Ends on a High Note

Oil ended its worst week since October on a gain, a day after inflation concerns and worries over the trajectory of near-term demand triggered the largest daily loss in several months. Brent crude for May settlement dropped US$0.38 to US$64.15 per barrel.

Source: Affin Hwang Research - 22 Mar 2021