SINGAPORE : Stocks were subdued on Friday, apart from standout gains in Japan, as an artificial intelligence rally took a breather and as time ticked out on high-stakes talks to avoid a U.S. debt default.
The Nikkei is up 0.7 per cent on the week, too, for a seventh weekly gain in row - its longest weekly winning streak in five years and one which has added some $460 billion to Japanese stocks. "These forces have brought about a tectonic shift in the price-setting behaviour of Japanese companies, and thus an improvement in their profit margins."
The U.S. Treasury estimates it'll run out of funds within a week and legislating any deal will take that down to the wire. The New Zealand dollar has been a big loser on the week, diving 3 per cent to test 60 cents as nerves about higher U.S. rates have come together with New Zealand's central bank all but calling time on rate hikes at its meeting on Wednesday.China's yuan has been the other notable casualty and has slid along with Chinese stocks as the shine comes off expectations of a booming post-pandemic recovery.