Thai Baht Weakens Amid Headwinds Including Slow Growth — Market Talk

0201 GMT - The Thai baht weakens against the dollar amid headwinds such as slow growth in Thailand. These include limited fiscal space and net foreign portfolio outflows, MUFG Bank's Lloyd Chan says in a research report. Also, "higher oil prices should worsen Thailand's terms of trade and widen its oil deficit, while softer tourism receipts reduce an important forex buffer," the senior currency analyst says. "We remain cautious on THB." The dollar rises 0.4% to 33.65 baht after earlier touching 33.70 baht, the highest intraday level since late July, LSEG data show. ([email protected])0155 GMT - Nidec's large impairment may have implications for the Japanese electric-motor maker's credit ratings, Daiwa Securities' Hiroki Uchida says in a note. Nidec booked a bigger-than-previously-flagged impairment loss of 632 billion yen for the fiscal year ended March. It cites a deterioration in its electric-vehicle motor business and excessive competition for motors used in household appliances in China, among other reasons. Still, excluding the one-off effect of impairment loss, the company likely booked a fiscal-year operating gain, suggesting demand for its motors is unlikely to have fallen significantly, the Daiwa credit analyst says. Concerns about liquidity to redeem existing bonds continue to be limited, Uchida says. Nidec is rated AA- by Rating and Investment Information and #AA by Japan Credit Rating Agency. ([email protected]; @kosakunarioka)0100 GMT - Bitcoin edges down 0.2% to $83,483 in Asia after closing out one of its best quarters in years, as traders parse cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation data. While that tempered expectations of another Federal Reserve rate hike in October and initially drove yields lower, much of that move reversed, suggesting that concerns about inflation and debt remain, says Antonio Di Giacomo at XS.com. After the data, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said inflation is still too high, and pointed to the upward revision to GDP as suggesting a resilient economy. High Treasury yields remain the top counterweight for Bitcoin, giving investors an alternative that provides regular income. Short term, the $84,000 area serves as a reference point for assessing whether Bitcoin can stabilize after its pullback, Di Giacomo says.([email protected])0023 GMT - Japan's Nikkei Stock Average is up 1.0% at 67401.66 as gains in chip shares offset losses in financial stocks. Kioxia Holdings is up 3.4%, and Tokyo Electron is 3.1% higher, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is down 2.4% and Tokio Marine Holdings is 4.5% lower. The broader market index Topix is down 0.5% at 4087.50. The dollar is 157.68 yen, compared with Y156.81 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are closely watching developments in the Middle East conflict, crude oil prices and bond yields. ([email protected]; @kosakunarioka)0021 GMT - JGBs fall in price terms in morning Tokyo session on the prospects for a quicker pace of BOJ rate hikes. The BOJ Tankan survey released earlier showed "overall business conditions were the most favourable in decades, which should encourage the Bank of Japan to keep tightening policy at a faster pace," Capital Economics' Marcel Thieliant says in a commentary. Also, the Tankan "won't dispel the BOJ's concerns about upside risks to inflation and we're sticking to our view that the [central] bank will lift its policy rate to 2% by mid-2027," the head of Asia-Pacific adds. Ten-year JGB yields rise 2.5 bps to 3.085%. ([email protected])0013 GMT - The 5% level on the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield has been an important psychological threshold for investors, effectively marking the upper end of the range since the post-Covid period, says David Clewell, portfolio manager for multi-asset global income strategy at T. Rowe Price. Once a key technical level like this is breached, systematic and quantitative positioning can amplify the move and lead to further selling, he says. Given the resilience of U.S. economic growth, there is a credible case for the 10-year Treasury yield to rise toward 5.5% to 6.0%, he adds. ([email protected]; @JamesGlynnWSJ)2349 GMT - Japanese stocks may remain rangebound as uncertainty over the Middle East conflict and the U.S. interest rate outlook continues. Some technology stocks may be supported after Micron Technology's profit and revenue surged in the fiscal fourth quarter. Nikkei futures are up 0.3% at 67240 on the SGX. The dollar is 157.47 yen, compared with Y156.81 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are focusing on developments in the Iran conflict, crude oil prices and bond yields. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.9% to 66753.72 on Wednesday. ([email protected])2336 GMT - The yen consolidates against other currencies ahead of the BOJ's tankan survey and its summary of opinions from its September meeting, which are due today. The tankan is likely to show "firmer business sentiment and elevated inflation expectations, bolstering the case for further BOJ rate hikes," CBA's Kristina Clifton says in a research report. "However, the BOJ's recent split decision and a more hawkish Fed mean BOJ rate hike expectations are unlikely to offer much support to the JPY," the senior economist and senior currency strategist says. The dollar is little changed at 157.39 yen, while the Australian dollar is 0.1% lower at Y109.28, LSEG data show. ([email protected])2318 GMT - A more than 20% fall in the share price of Imricor Medical Systems since it entered the ASX 300 index in early September creates a great buying opportunity for investors, according to its bull at Morgans. Imricor ended Wednesday at A$1.585, having traded as high as A$2.07 in August. Morgans suggests seasonal weakness and rising interest rates may have contributed to the share-price fall. Recent news flow has been positive. "As we move into a seasonally stronger part of the year, together with our view that material news flow (NorthStar orders, submit clinical data, FDA approval) is expected, we believe the share price should move back over A$2.00," Morgans' analyst Scott Power says. Morgans has a speculative buy call on Imricor. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)2251 GMT - The slump in Australian home prices continued in September with prices down 1.1% according to property research group Cotality. Capital city prices fell 1.2% and previous months were revised to show bigger falls. Further falls are likely as home prices are being hit by a perfect storm of rate hikes, tax hikes on investors, poor confidence and poor affordability depressing demand, with a high risk of distressed sales flowing from higher mortgage rates and unemployment, says Shane Oliver, chief economist at AMP Capital. AMP now expects national average property prices to have a top to bottom fall in prices of 10% to 15%, of which they have done 5.2% so far. ([email protected]; @JamesGlynnWSJ)2215 GMT - Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee says consumer sentiment data is proving less useful for the Fed's forecasting as it continues to split further from what consumer spending data shows. "We're experiencing record divergence between the vibe and the hard data," Goolsbee says while delivering remarks in Chicago. The factors driving that divide include higher gas prices and food prices, which have high visibility and an outsize impact on sentiment, he says. People are also becoming less trusting in public institutions, including the Fed, Goolsbee says. That weak sentiment data is still important in a lot of applications, just not the Fed's "very narrow" purpose of balancing stable prices with maximum employment, he says. ([email protected])2202 GMT - The Australian dollar continues its downward trend, falling by 0.5% in U.S. trading to around 69.50 US cents. A stronger U.S. dollar and weaker European and U.S. equities weighed on the pair.Less hawkish than expected policy meeting communication from the Reserve Bank of Australia on Tuesday and a slightly weaker August CPI data have caused markets to reduce RBA interest rate hike expectations, says Kristina Clifton, currency strategist at CBA.Markets are now pricing only a 20% chance of a November increase, she adds.([email protected]; @JamesGlynnWSJ)