- Markets are making a slow start to the holiday weekend, which means some markets will be closed today
- The Nikkei closed the session at 0.5% plus, while the USDJPY is trading at 151.4 and is flat on an intraday basis. Japan's Finance Minister Suzuki stressed that currency market movements are exaggerated, are speculative, and did not rule out further interventions in the yen.
- Japan's industrial production fell -3.4% y/y vs. -1.5% previously. On the other hand, however, retail sales in February turned out to be quite a bit higher, rising 4.6% y/y. An increase of 2.8% was expected vs. 2.1% previously.
On a monthly basis, sales rose 1.5% vs. 0.6% forecast and 0.8% previously. Supermarket sales rose 7.2% vs. 3.3% previously - Building permits in Japan fell -8.2% y/y vs. -5.45% forecast and -7.5% previously. Core inflation in the Tokyo region was 2.4% vs. 2.5% previously, in line with forecasts
- China's benchmarks gained, with the Hang Seng up more than 0.9%, thanks to the banking sector and despite weakness in Chinese real estate developer stocks. According to analysts, Chinese factory activity likely declined in March, 6th month in a row
- South Korea's KOSPI rose a modest 0.2%, and Korea's finance minister was said to be talking to institutional investors about raising investment in the country
- Commodity markets are closed, but yesterday oil closed the session high near $87 per barrel and has gained about 15% since January 1, 2024
- An Israeli attack on Aleppo, Syria, was said to have killed 33 civilians and military personnel, according to anonymous Reuters sources. Palestinian media reported a series of explosions in Gaza and the deaths of 12 Palestinians in Gaza City
- Bitcoin is trading at $70,400, with some smaller cryptocurrencies losing in the 2-3% range. Microstrategy shares closed yesterday's session -11% lower, following a report from long/short fund Kerrisdale Capital.
- The fund pointed out that the company's stock was overvalued relative to the value of its Bitcoin holdings, but at the same time announced that it had opened long positions on U.S. spot BTC ETFs
- The International Court of Justice is pushing Israel to allow humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, where residents face a real threat of famine
- Taiwan Navy Commander Tang Hua will visit the United States next week, according to Financial Times sources. Americans reported shooting down 4 drones of Huti rebels. Russian foreign affair minister Lavrov indicates that current Ukraine peace plan is 'pointless'
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