Asian shares inched closer to a record high on Friday as U.S. jobs data pointed to firm economic growth although the greenback was soft as the specter of benign inflation capped domestic bond yields.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose nearly 0.3 per cent in morning trade to 584.5, with benchmark indexes in Australia and South Korea up about 0.6 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively.
The MSCI index was about 1 per cent shy of its all-time peak of 591.5 hit in November 2007.
Japan's Nikkei gained 0.5 per cent to a 26-year high.
MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe has risen 2.1 per cent so far this week, putting it on course to log its best weekly performance since July.
The U.S. ADP National Employment Report on Thursday showed U.S. private employers added 250,000 jobs in December, the biggest monthly increase since March and well above economists’ expectations of a rise of 190,000.
That helped the Dow Jones Industrial Average sail past the 25,000-mark for the first time. S&P 500 gained 0.40 per cent while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.18 per cent, both notching record closing highs.
The data also boosted expectations on Friday’s payroll data by U.S. Labor Department, where economist have forecast non-farm job growth of 190,000 in December.
Despite signs of a strong U.S. labor market, the dollar was soft, hovering just above its three-month low against a basket of major currencies.
The dollar index stood at 91.877, near Tuesday’s three-month low of 91.751.
“The dollar looks very weak at the moment. And I think the reason comes down to the fact that U.S. long-term bond yields are very low despite the Fed’s rate hikes,” said Masashi Murata, senior currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman.
The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield stood at 2.460 percent, below its seven-month peak of 2.504 per cent touched on Dec. 21. Those levels are little different from about a year ago, even after the Fed hiked interest rates three times last year and market expectations for another three hikes in 2018.
Capping U.S. long-term bond yields were expectations that inflation will remain tame as wage growth has been slower than before the 2007-2008 financial crisis.
In that regard, average hourly earnings data due at 1330 GMT, along with payroll figures, could attract more attention, given wage growth is a key factor behind inflation trends.
Economists expect U.S. wages to have risen 2.5 per cent from a year earlier in December, the same as in November.
The euro held firm at $1.2075, holding its gains so far this week of 0.6 per cent and coming within sight of its 2 1/2-year peak of $1.2092 set in early September.
The euro zone’s consumer inflation data, due at 1000 GMT, is expected to show an easing to 1.4 per cent in December from 1.5 per cent in November.
But stronger-than-expected German inflation data published late last year is fueling speculation of a higher reading, which in turn could encourage expectations the European Central Bank may move faster to wind up its stimulus.
Many emerging economy currencies have gained even more against the dollar this week as investors look for higher yields.
Since the start of 2018, the Brazilian real gained 2.4 per cent, the Mexican peso 1.8 per cent, the Indonesian rupiah 1.1 per cent and the Indian rupee 0.7 per cent.
On the other hand, the yen, which also tends to by used as a funding currency for investment in higher-yielding assets, has lost 0.1 per cent against the dollar this week to 112.83 yen.
But some market players also said market moves so far this year has been mostly driven by short-term speculators and many long-term investors were on sidelines, hampered not least by high valuations of stocks in U.S. and some other countries.
“As far as I can see, real money investors have been cautious. So I would advise not to read too much into the new year market moves,” said Kazushige Kaida, head of foreign exchange at State Street Bank in Tokyo.
In commodities markets, oil prices softened marginally but held near their highest levels since May 2015 on concerns about supply risks due to unrest in Iran and another decline in U.S. inventories as refining activity hit a 12-year high.
U.S. crude eased to $61.94 a barrel after having risen to as high as $62.21 the previous session.
International benchmark Brent futures dipped nearly 0.2 percent to $67.95.
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The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Frida%20
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COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Results
Catchweight 60kg: Mohammed Al Katheeri (UAE) beat Mostafa El Hamy (EGY) TKO round 3
Light Heavyweight: Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) no contest Kevin Oumar (COM) Unintentional knee by Oumer
Catchweight 73kg: Yazid Chouchane (ALG) beat Ahmad Al Boussairy (KUW) Unanimous decision
Featherweight: Faris Khaleel Asha (JOR) beat Yousef Al Housani (UAE) TKO in round 2 through foot injury
Welterweight: Omar Hussein (JOR) beat Yassin Najid (MAR); Split decision
Middleweight: Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) beat Sallah Eddine Dekhissi (MAR); Round-1 TKO
Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammed Ali Musalim (UAE) beat Medhat Hussein (EGY); Triangle choke submission
Welterweight: Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) beat Sofiane Oudina (ALG); Triangle choke Round-1
Lightweight: Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Saleem Al Bakri (JOR); Unanimous decision
Bantamweight: Ali Taleb (IRQ) beat Nawras Abzakh (JOR); TKO round-2
Catchweight 63kg: Rany Saadeh (PAL) beat Abdel Ali Hariri (MAR); Unanimous decision
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
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Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour Calendar 2018/19
July 29: OTA Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
Sep 22-23: LA Convention Centre in Los Angeles, US
Nov 16-18: Carioca Arena Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Feb 7-9: Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE
Mar 9-10: Copper Box Arena in London, UK
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):
Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points
Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now