Aug 14 ,2023
Synopsis:
Asia equities lower almost everywhere Monday. Equities led lower by Hong Kong and in particular its property stocks. Mainland benchmarks also lower but off their troughs by the close. Elsewhere, Japan sharply down, Taipei also saw steep losses. Southeast Asia and India both lower, Jakarta the only bourse to rise by a few points. US futures turning higher, Europe quickly reversed early losses and now higher. US dollar DXY index holding 103 level, yen breeched 145 per dollar level briefly, AUD and NZD lower, yuan also weakened to multi-month lows. Treasury yields higher except at the very long end, JGB yields higher, China 10ys almost at 1Y lows. Crude blends lower, industrial and precious metals mixed. Cryptocurrencies volatile and lower.
Asia assets lower from the bell Monday morning following reports over the weekend that Country Garden (2007.HK) had suspended trading in as many as 11 of its onshore bonds, to follow on from its missed coupon payment last week. Liquidity problems at an asset manager with CNY1T under AUM also weighed on banks and financials in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Investors also bracing for release Tuesday of China economic activity data that is expected to show further weakness in the greater China economy. PBOC expected to keep the 1Y MLF rate unchanged while rolling over CNY400B of maturing loans, with attention remaining high amid economists' calls for some easing this year.
Regional volatility increasing in Asia assets as doubts grow over China's economic recovery: Australia's dollar reached nine-month lows, its stocks ended at six-week lows, 10Y bond yield at month-long high; the yen through 145 per dollar, a rate some see as a line in the sand as far as BOJ is concerned with traders watching for signs of intervention just as the US dollar touched five-week highs. India equities at six-week lows, China 10Y sovereign bonds at 51-week low as the Hang Seng nears its YTD support level.
Softbank (9984.JP) is said to be in talks over acquiring a 25% stake in ARM from its own Vision Fund 1. Country Garden (2007.HK) said it had suspended trading in as many as 11 of its onshore bonds. L'Occitane (973.HK) confirms its controlling shareholder is considering taking the firm private. Foxconn (Hon Hai, 2317.HK) said its Q2 profit slipped under pressure from global economic woes that have affected consumer demand for smart technology products.
Digest:
Asia markets see sharp declines to start the week:
Asia stock markets sharply lower Monday with Hang Seng down another 2.1% following dire lending data post close Friday, and news over weekend Country Garden (2007.HK) is to suspend trading in at least 10 onshore bonds (Bloomberg). Shanghai Composite recovering late afternoon to trade 0.3%, CSI 300 0.7% down as fears grow over state of China economy and lack of meaningful stimulus. Hang Seng Mainland Property index -3.8% however losses on Hang Seng cross-sector. Taiwan equities selling off sharply led by tech, Singapore also underperforming as its trade-exposed banks weigh. In bond markets, China 10Y yield at 12m low of 2.62% earlier; New Zealand 10Y yields at 12-year high, Australia at four-week high; JGBs and Treasury yields also spiking. Yen slipped below 145 per dollar for time before modest strengthening, yuan weaker, Australian dollar at a nine-month low.
Country Garden suspends trading in several onshore bonds:
In a regulatory filing, Country Garden (2007.HK) suspended trading in 11 onshore bonds from Monday. Commentary largely reiterated its earlier statement guiding H1 net loss of CNY45-55B in 1H23, compared with CNY1.91B profit a year earlier. Vowed no effort will be spared to ensure delivery of homes. Committed to actively resolve phased liquidity pressure, communicate with stakeholders and consider adopting various debt management measures. Reemphasized the group has sufficient net assets and abundant land reserves. Pledged best efforts in areas such as revitalizing underperforming assets such as hotels, office buildings and shops. No added color on the special task force. Recall guidance came after Country Garden missed coupon payments of $22.5M in dollar bonds 6-Aug, triggering 30-day grace period. Moody's downgraded the corporate family rating by three notches to 'Caa1' from 'B1' with a negative outlook, citing heightened liquidity and refinancing risk after the company missed bond payments (Reuters). Also warned credit distress likely to spill over to property and financial markets (Reuters).
China trust product investors also reporting missed payments:
Bloomberg reported three firms said late Friday they failed to receive payments on multiple high-yield investment products issued by companies linked to Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, which has ~CNY1T ($138B) in assets under management. One of the companies was Zhongrong International Trust which bought stakes in real estate projects last year. Headlines were seen exacerbating market concerns after Country Garden's suspension of onshore bond trading. Article noted Zhongzhi's extensive portfolio -- it is the second-largest shareholder of Zhongrong Trust with a stake of ~33%, holds stakes in five other licensed financial firms, including a mutual fund manager and two insurers, and invested in five asset management companies and four wealth units. Also controls listed companies and owns 4.5B tons of coal reserves among its industrial operations. Cited third-party data indicating Zhongrong Trust alone has 270 products totaling CNY39.5B due this year. The trust company has disclosed little to the public about its situation, though it has said it's aware of forged letters being shared on social media saying the company is no longer able to operate.
Analysts upgrade Asia corporate earnings estimates:
Reuters cited Refinitiv data showing equity analysts upgraded Asian companies' forward 12-month net profits by 2.3% over the past month, following 0.7% growth seen last month. Noted that Q2 results have been strong so far. With half the region having reported June quarter results, 56% beat consensus. In comparison, Reuters separately reported 78.7% of S&P 500 names were above expectations with 91% of results in. Still, HSBC noted margin expansion has played a major role supporting most Asian markets. By sector, consumer discretionary led with 2.8% of earnings upgrades over the past month, while utilities and financials sectors also got an upward revision of 2.5% and 1.4%, respectively. China remains a particular focus -- forward earnings consensus rose 0.5% over the past month after three straight months of cuts. Majority of upgrades followed the Politburo's declaration of more policy support focusing on domestic demand. However, investors and analysts said substantive actions will need to follow policymaker rhetoric to help shore up shaken confidence in China.
China State Council issues guidelines to support foreign investment:
State Council issued guidelines on Sunday to further optimize the country's foreign investment environment and attract more foreign investment (Reuters, Xinhua). While details remain light, statement flagged increased fiscal support and tax incentives for foreign-invested enterprises, such as temporarily exempting withholding income tax for foreign investors' reinvestment of their profits into China. Nikkei's top story Sunday discussed accelerating weakness in FDI, dropping 87% y/y in Q2 to its lowest since at least 1998. Cited US-China frictions in tech amid a broader defensive stance on foreign policy. Article noted FDI continued to fall after China lifted its Zero-Covid policies in January, leaving H1 down 2.7% in yuan terms. Trend consistent with anecdotal concerns expressed in surveys such as AmCham that cited US-China tensions as the biggest risk factor. Optimism toward China's opening-up almost halved to 34%. Also mentioned backdrop of challenges in the domestic economy due to the housing market correction. Also, China is rushing to build its own supply network in the semiconductor industry, though overseas procurement of equipment and parts has been delayed.
Notable Gainers:
+47% 2197.HK (Clover Biopharmaceuticals): guides H1 net profit not less than CNY500M vs year-ago CNY1.14B
+8.8% 973.HK (L'Occitane International): confirms controlling holder is considering possible take-private at not less than HK$26/share
+5.7% 5803.JP (Fujikura): revenue ¥190.21B vs FactSet ¥175.21B, operating income ¥12.57B vs FactSet ¥9.80B
+5.1% 6098.JP (Recruit): reports Q1 revenue ¥850.83B vs StreetAccount ¥823.33B, adjusted EBITDA ¥165.92B vs StreetAccount ¥148.91B
+3.5% 4755.JP (Rakuten Group): reports Q2 operating income (¥48.89B) vs FactSet (¥49.06B)
+1.0% 7532.JP (Pan Pacific International Holdings): reports July all stores sales: domestic retail companies +9.8% y/y
+1.0% 017670.KS (SK Telecom): to invest additional $100M (KRW133.16B) in Anthropic, an AI safety and research company
Notable Decliners:
-18.4% 2007.HK (Country Garden Holdings): suspends trading in corporate bonds
-9.0% 000656.CH (Jinke Property Group Co.): to transfer 36 properties to Jinke Smart Services Group
-7.2% 489.HK (Dongfeng Motor Group): guides H1 net income attributable (80%)-(75%) vs prior year's CNY5.53B, implying CNY1.11-1.38B
-5.6% 8876.JP (Relo Group): reports Q1 revenue ¥30.68B vs FactSet ¥30.73B, operating income ¥5.74B vs FactSet ¥6.16B
-2.9% 9984.JP (SoftBank Group): reportedly in discussions to acquire 25% stake in Arm from Vision Fund 1
-1.8% 8001.JP (ITOCHU): to commence ¥3000/share tender offer to acquire minimum 8.3M shares in Daiken
Data:
Economic:
No economic data today
Markets:
Nikkei: (413.74) or (1.27%) to 32059.91
Hang Seng: (301.64) or (1.58%) to 18773.55
Shanghai Composite: (10.82) or (0.34%) to 3178.43
Shenzhen Composite: (2.64) or (0.13%) to 1999.65
ASX200: (63.10) or (0.86%) to 7277.00
KOSPI: (20.39) or (0.79%) to 2570.87
SENSEX: (99.41) or (0.15%) to 65223.24
Currencies:
$-¥: (0.13) or (0.09%) to 144.7910
$-KRW: (1.88) or (0.14%) to 1328.7300
A$-$: (0.00) or (0.06%) to 0.6495
$-INR: (0.02) or (0.03%) to 82.9650
$-CNY: (0.01) or (0.16%) to 7.2257
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