Asian Market Update – Friday: Coins mixed; Asian stocks tumble as investors assess Fed, ECB decisions

The Big Question: What’s next for ethereum and litecoin?

The major cryptocurrencies were in a mixed mode on Friday morning in Asia, with bitcoin posting decent gains, and ethereum and litecoin taking losses.

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After modest gains on Thursday and a big loss on Wednesday, bitcoin on Friday edged up again. As of midday in Hong Kong, the virtual currency was up 4 percent to $17,400. Overall, bitcoin has gained about 13.50 percent so far this week – the fifth straight week of gains.

Ethereum entered into a relatively steep fall in Asian trading on Friday morning. At midday, ethereum was down 6.5 percent to $656 on Coinbase. Though the coin surged on Thursday morning, it finished the day down by about 0.5 percent.  Overall, ethereum had a great week, gaining as much as 50.7 percent in the week after two straight weeks of losses.

Litecoin was down for a third consecutive day on Friday. As of midday, the virtual currency was down 2.85 percent to $275. The fall on Friday morning followed a 9.5 percent loss on Thursday and 11 percent fall on Wednesday.

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It has still been a fantastic week for litecoin, which surged from around $150 to reach as high as $420 on Coinbase on Tuesday. Overall, the virtual currency has gained more than 80 percent for the week – its sixth straight week of gains.

Main Market Movers – Mid-day Asian Trading Session

Indexes	Value at Midday	Daily Change
Japan- Nikkei 225	22,537	-0.69%
China-Shanghai Composite Index	3,264	-0.85%
Hong Kong –Hang Seng	28,826	-1.16%
South Korea-KOSPI	2,480	0.46%
Australia-ASX 200	5,999	-0.19%
S&P 500 E-Mini Futures	2,656	0.11%

Major Asian equities were pointing lower on Friday morning, with significant losses seen in Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and Japan, while stocks in South Korea edged up slightly. The drop came as investors digested the latest monetary policy clues from the US Fed and the ECB meetings.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index lost 1.16 percent to 28,826 at midday. A move by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on Thursday to raise the base rate by 25 basis points in response to the US rate hike did not appear to help investor sentiment.

On the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.85 percent at midday on Friday to 3,264. The People’s Bank of China also raised its short-term and medium-term borrowing rates on Thursday after the Fed decision. A slew of figures out on Thursday, including retail sales, foreign direct investment, showed positive signs, but fixed-asset investments cooled in November.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Index was off 0.69 percent to 22,537 at midday. The drop followed a new survey released by the BOJ suggesting business sentiment at Japanese companies have improved significantly, having hit a 11-year high.

Down under, the ASX 200 was also down a slight 0.19 percent to 5,999 at midday.

The S&P 500 E-Mini Futures was up 0.11 percent to 2,656.

Stocks in South Korea edged up on Friday morning. At midday, the Kospi was up 0.46 percent to 2,480.

The Fed on Wednesday hiked interest rates, as was widely expected, but maintained its outlook for the coming years despite improvements in the US economy.

The ECB, on its end, kept its cautious stance on the prospect of reaching inflation goals even though it vowed to keep stimulus in place.  Investors are carefully examining these stances as they plan their investments for the next year.

Also, lingering uncertainties over the prospect of the US tax reform passing congress continues to weigh on investor sentiment. The latest reports showed that the bill hasn’t gained full support from key Republican lawmakers like Marco Rubio, who demanded changes to a child tax credit.

Currencies

The Japanese yen firmed 0.08 percent against the US dollar at midday Friday, changing hands at 112.29 per dollar.

The Chinese yuan firmed 0.03 percent against the US dollar at 6.6072 per dollar.

The Australian dollar firmed 0.02 percent on the dollar, changing hands at 1.3042 per dollar at midday.

Commodities

WTI Oil was up 0.02 percent to $57.14 per barrel at midday on Thursday.

Brent Crude was down 0.16 percent to $63.28 per barrel.

Gold was up 0.24 percent to $1,254 an ounce.

News across Asia

In China, British officials, including finance minister Philip Hammond and Bank of England chief Mark Carney, are trying to ink trade and investment deals with China worth a billion pounds during a visit to Beijing. The deals are part of wide-ranging talks between the UK and China during what officials on both sides call a “Golden Era” of bilateral relations.

Take away: Britain is looking to strengthen trade and investment ties with countries such as China, as it seeks to build new relations after exiting the European Union.

In Japan, big Japanese manufacturing companies’ confidence improved for a fifth consecutive quarter in the fourth quarter of 2017 and hit a 11-year high, a BOJ survey out on Friday showed.

Take away: This is just one of the many positive signs in the Japanese economy with robust exports and rising corporate profits, and the BOJ indicates that it will continue its massive stimulus package and ultra-easy monetary policies.