Market News

•  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.04%, Shanghai Composite down 1.02% Hang Seng up 0.50% ASX down 0.17%
• Commodities : Gold at $4,711.34 (0.13%) Silver at $87.675 (-1.91%), Brent Oil at $106.04 (0.38%), WTI Oil at $101.51 (0.49%)
• Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.461, UK 10-year yield at 5.0750, Germany 10-year yield at 3.1098

• (USD) Core PPI m/m  1.0%  to 0.3%   expected

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Thursday as investors closely watched a high-stakes meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping for signals on the future of trade relations between the world’s two largest economies. Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday alongside several…

IC Markets Global – Europe Fundamental Forecast | 14 May 2026

What happened in the Asia session?

Markets navigated lingering U.S.-Iran diplomatic hopes that tempered oil prices (WTI at $96.31 after -2.8% drop), boosting risk assets like Japan’s Nikkei and Korea’s Kospi despite no fresh macro data; however, hawkish BoJ echoes and Middle East risks kept volatility high, most impacting crude futures, tech-heavy indices (Samsung up sharply prior), and yen strength, with broader U.S. futures stable.

What does it mean for the Europe & US sessions?

Traders must monitor the fallout from yesterday’s hotter-than-expected U.S. Producer Price Index rise of 1.4% in April, coupled with weak 30-year bond auction demand, which underscores inflation risks…

New yuan loans for the month of April came in at -¥10 billion. Yes, that's another negative reading and one to follow up the supposed blip from July last year. Once is maybe a coincidence, but twice and it's starting to draw questions of whether there is an underlying problem with credit demand conditions.

That means the year-to-date figure for total new bank lending this year is ¥8.59 trillion. It marks a notable drop from the roughly ¥10 billion figure from January to April last year.

So, what does this mean?

It is quite a disappointing number, all things considered. The recent focus and policy shift by Beijing has been to do anything in order to bolster domestic demand conditions. Credit demand falling and being this subdued to start the…

US Tech Rallies Despite More Strong Inflation Data – Nasdaq up 1.2%

US equity markets finished mixed overnight, with technology stocks once again leading the charge higher despite another round of stronger-than-expected US inflation data. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both closed at fresh record highs as investors continued to favour large-cap tech names, while the Dow Jones edged slightly lower by the close.

US producer price data came in well above expectations, reinforcing the view that the Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut interest rates in the near term. Treasury yields initially pushed higher following the release, while the US dollar gained ground against the major currencies as traders further reduced expectations for policy…

IC Markets Global – Asia Fundamental Forecast | 14 May 2026

What happened in the U.S. session?

A hotter‑than‑expected April PPI release overnight surprised markets and pushed up U.S. Treasury yields as traders priced a higher‑for‑longer Fed path, which in turn pressured rate‑sensitive equities and strengthened the dollar, while company‑specific earnings and tech/semiconductor headlines produced large moves in megacap and chip stocks; the result was mixed U.S. equity performance, a notable rise in the 10‑year Treasury yield, and activity across FX and commodity (oil) markets tied to inflation and geopolitical developments.

What does it mean for the Asia Session?

US April retail sales and weekly jobless claims due on Thursday will drive…

• CPI +2.2% vs +2.2% y/y prelim
• Prior +1.7%
• HICP +2.5% vs +2.5% y/y prelim
• Prior +2.0%

The monthly change itself also shows a 1% increase in headline inflation, leading to the annual estimate to cross back above the 2% mark in April. Of note, energy prices once again picked up in recording a 4.7% increase on the month after jumping up by 8.9% in March. That is largely driven by the prices of petroleum products (diesel, petrol and liquid fuel), which were up by 8.2% in April.

As for the headline annual estimate, it is largely tied to the sharp acceleration in prices of energy (+14.3% compared to April last year).

The only bit of good news is that the impact hasn't quite yet spilled over to core prices more meaningfully. That being said, core…

• The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation
• Also discussed expanding market access for US businesses into China and increasing Chinese investment
• Trump, Xi highlighted need to build on progress in ending fentanyl crisis
• Also talked about increasing Chinese purchases of US agricultural products
• Both sides agreed that Strait of Hormuz must remain open and that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon

What is interesting so far is that the US camp is touching more on trade issues and a light sprinkle on the Iran situation mostly. However, the Chinese camp is mostly emphasising on Taiwan being a very important subject at this stage. The readout from the foreign ministry earlier specifically highlighted the Taiwan matter and even Xi…

Even so, headline inflation increased further by 0.4% on the month with price pressures seen more widespread. Restaurants and accommodation services saw a 1.2% increase with clothing and footwear reflected a 6.0% jump in prices. Meanwhile, transportation prices saw a 0.9% jump.

As for the annual estimate, it is all down to higher energy prices. Transportation prices surged by 6.5% compared to April last year, largely on the back of higher fuel and lubricant prices for personal vehicles.

The only bright spot is that core annual inflation is seen easing a touch to 2.8% - down from 2.9% in March.

But as the Middle East conflict drags on, expect inflation pressures to widen and spill over to core prices in due time. That especially as energy…

• Prior +0.5%; revised to +0.4%
• Services output +0.3% vs -0.1% m/m expected
• Prior +0.5%
• Industrial output -0.2% vs -0.3% m/m expected
• Prior +0.5%; revised to +0.3%
• Manufacturing output +1.2% vs 0.0% m/m expected
• Prior -0.1%; revised to -0.2%
• Construction output +1.5% vs -0.5% m/m expected
• Prior +1.0%; revised to +0.5%

The UK economy braved the challenges from higher energy prices to post a strong performance in March. That largely came on the back of a better performance in the services sector, which also contributed 0.8% in terms of growth in the first quarter.

Of note, there was a widespread increase in output across the majority of subsectors in terms of services output. The breakdown can be seen below:

And even when drilling down further,…

• Prior +0.1%
• GDP +1.1% vs +0.8% y/y expected
• Prior +1.0%

That's a solid showing by the UK economy in the first quarter of the year, helped by a strong performance in March despite the challenges from rising energy prices. Services output was the biggest contributor, increasing by 0.8% in Q1 2026. That compares with the 0.2% growth in the same sector in Q4 2025. And even compared to the same quarter a year ago, services output was higher by 1.4%.

Of note, non-consumer-facing services (business-facing services) grew by 0.7%, while consumer-facing services grew by 0.8%.

Besides that, household consumption also showed a notable increase in the first quarter (+0.35%) which is a marked improvement from the final quarter of last year (+0.07%).

All in…

This will be in observance of Ascension Day and with it being on a Thursday, we could see many people take a "bridge" holiday on Friday into the weekend as well. The holiday here is not one that is observed in Spain or Italy though, with Assumption Day (in August) being the more important celebration.

The post here is just a heads up that even with it being a holiday in some parts of the region, markets will remain opened and trading hours will continue as per usual. The Euronext (except Oslo), Xetra, and Frankfurt stock exchanges will continue to operate accordingly, albeit with likely lesser liquidity conditions.

To those celebrating, I wish you all a good break today and a wonderful weekend too if you're taking some extra time off. Have…