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China says that wrong actions from the US has escalated trade frictions greatly

Comments by China’s commerce ministry

  • Says that US actions have increased chances of a global economic recession
  • Urges US to stop abusing domestic laws to sanction Chinese firms
  • Says that China will adopt necessary measures to safeguard its firms’ interests
Fighting words like these won’t really help ease the risk mood we’re seeing so far today. US equity futures have slipped to fresh lows, down by 0.7% now as risk-off sentiment starts to gain further momentum on the session.

Eurostoxx futures -0.7% in early European trading

The softer risk tones extend to Europe in early trades

  • German DAX futures -0.7%
  • French CAC 40 futures -0.6%
  • UK FTSE futures -0.6%
This mainly reflects the mood seen in US equity futures, which are down by 0.5% now. Risk sentiment remains slightly on the cautious side as we begin trading on the session with the undertones from US-China trade tensions still weighing on markets this week.
For today, look towards euro area PMI data for more clues as further deterioration in economic conditions in the region could spark more safety flows on fears that the global economic slowdown is worsening.

Nikkei 225 closes lower by 0.62% at 21,151.14

Tokyo’s main index closes lower as US-China tensions continue to weigh on sentiment in the region this week

Nikkei 23-05

This mainly reflects the softer mood in Wall Street overnight as well as US equity futures today, which are down by about 0.5% currently. US-China tensions are still the main factor affecting markets as it looks like the cautious sentiment will continue for a while longer.

Chinese equities are weighed lower, down by more than 1% on the day. The weaker risk tones are helping to push the yen a little higher with USD/JPY slightly lower at 110.28 currently.

The Hong Kong dollar peg has been in place without breaking since 1983. This time its different says Kyle Bass.

Kyle Bass is short the HKD looking for the central bank in HK, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority

(usually described ad the de facto central bank)
Bass says (in a nutshell):
  • is “very long dollars”
  • Hong Kong Monetary Authority has spent 80% of its reserves over the past year defending the peg
  • Once depleted, the pressure on the currency board will become untenable and the peg will break”
HKMA says … nah. Bloomberg go on:
  • the HKMA … explains … when the aggregate balance shrinks, then local interest rates rise. Higher rates reduce the incentive for investors to sell the Hong Kong dollar.
There is plenty more at the article, link here. 

Kyle Bass is short the HKD Hong Kong Monetary Authority peg

Reuters: China’s rare earth supplies could be vital bargaining chip in US trade war

Here is Reuters with a good piece on China rare earths.

  • Rare earth elements are used in a wide range of consumer products, from iPhones to electric car motors, as well as military jet engines, satellites and lasers.
  • Rising tensions between the United States and China have sparked concerns that Beijing could use its dominant position as a supplier of rare earths for leverage in the trade war between the two global economic powers

Tesla bear camp grows as Citi slashes price target

A Citigroup analyst has joined the pack of bears coming for Tesla, whose stock has sunk to two-and-a-half-year lows amid simmering worries over demand.

Itay Michaeli warned of an increased chance that Tesla will enter a “full bear” scenario in which the stock could be worth a mere $36. The balance between risk and reward “still appears negatively skewed despite the recent capital raise and stock pullback”, he said.

Mr Michaeli also lowered his base-case price target to $191 from $238 while maintaining a sell rating on the stock.

“The recent capital raise was a positive step but won’t necessarily get the balance sheet out of the woods if Tesla cannot achieve FCF targets. So the recent reported internal memo [on cost cutting], which seemingly called into question prior guidance, didn’t help the risk/reward calculus,” he wrote in a note to clients.

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