Economic Data
(NZ) NEW ZEALAND JANUARY TRADE BALANCE (NZ$): -305M V +125ME; EXPORTS: 3.35B V 3.6BE; IMPORTS: 3.65B V 3.5BE
(NZ) NEW ZEALAND JANUARY NET MIGRATION: 350 V -80 PRIOR
(AU) AUSTRALIA Q4 CONSTRUCTION WORK DONE Q/Q: -0.1% V 1.5%E (1-year low)
(KR) SOUTH KOREA JAN CURRENT ACCOUNT: $2.3B V $2.1B PRIOR; GOODS BALANCE: $2.6B V $1.9B PRIOR
(KR) SOUTH KOREA FEB CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: 102 V 102.0 PRIOR
(JP) JAPAN JANUARY RETAIL TRADE M/M: 2.3% V 0.9%E; Y/Y: -1.1% V -1.5%E; LARGE RETAILERS' SALES Y/Y: -3.5% V -0.8%E
(HK) HONG KONG Q4 GDP Q/Q: 1.2% V 1.4%E; Y/Y: 2.5% V 2.4%E; YTD 2012 GDP 1.4% v 1.4%e
(TH) THAILAND JAN CUSTOMS TRADE BALANCE: -$5.5B V -$2.1BE
Markets Snapshot (as of 04:00 GMT)
Nikkei225 -0.7%
S&P/ASX +0.6%
Kospi +0.3%
Shanghai Composite +0.3%
Hang Seng +0.5%
Mar S&P500 flat at 1,492
Apr gold flat at $1,611/oz
Apr Crude Oil flat at $92.64/brl
Notes/Observations
Asian equity markets tracking the short-covering in US session; staunch defense of QE by the Fed Chairman Bernanke in his regular testimony on the Hill has pushed the concerns over Italian political deadlock to the backburner.
Moody's sounds off on Italy impasse; Would consider a downgrade if economy deteriorated or reforms stalled.
New Zealand trade balance back in the deficit after surprising first surplus in 5 months last month; NZD falls to session low below $0.8230 after trade data.
S&P warns that a number of possible scenarios may weigh on Australia's sovereign rating, given its a large amount of offshore and household debt; Sees risks mitigated for now; AUD/USD hit session lows after S&P report just shy of $1.02.
After draining another CNY5B in liquidity earlier this week, PBoC has gauged demand for reverse repos for the first time since the Lunar New Year, indicating the record in weekly liquidity drain seen last week may be reversed.
HK Fin Secretary Tsang unveiled 2013 budget, forecasting GDP at 1.5-3.5% and inflation at 4.5%.
Speakers/Political/In the Papers
(CN) China state economist sees Q1 GDP at about 8.0% v 7.9% in Q4; CPI seen at about 2.6% - Chinese press.
(CN) According to Soufun.com, Shanghai discounted housing projects to amount to 175 in March, down from 189 m/m and 204 y/y - Shanghai Daily.
(CN) China Foreign Ministry spokesperson: Buoys placed near the disputed Diaoyu (Senkaku) islands in the East China Sea are to monitor ocean conditions - Shanghai Daily.
(CN) PBoC refuses short term liquidity request for key China banks - China press.
(CN) PBoC gauging demand for reverse repos.
USD/CNY: (CN) Treasury's Wolin: Yuan is still undervalued; China needs to do more despite the progress made.
(CN) China Ministry of Land and Resources looking to accelerate plans to grow land supply to keep housing prices stable; May unveil new national plan in April - Shanghai Daily.
(AU) Australia PM Gillard: Australia public finances are strong - financial press.
(JP) Japan Chief Cabinet Sec Suga: PM Abe looking to submit BOJ nominations tomorrow if Diet schedule allows - financial press.
(HK) Hong Kong Financial Secy Tsang unveils 2013 budget: Budget measures to boost GDP by 1.3%; Sees 2013 GDP 1.5-3.5%; inflation seen at 4.5%; Acknowledges large downward risks in economy.
(KR) Bank of Korea (BoK) Director Cho: Current account will likely remain in surplus in February - financial press.
(US) Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV): Moves to hold a vote on Thursday to replace $85B in spending cuts with alternative to shift some of the extra revenue on the wealthy - financial press
Currencies
Asian currencies muted during the first part of Asian session, USD/JPY tracked movements in the Nikkei 225, declining in early trade to a 91.62 low before bouncing and remains range bound at 91.90 levels. JPY crosses declined on the early. JPY strength with EUR/JPY and AUD/JPY reaching lows of 119.50 and 93.75 respectively. AUD/USD declined about 15 pips on the back of an S&P report, noting that the country has vulnerabilities that could impact its sovereign rating. AUD stopped short of the 1.02 handle briefly tested in US session, reaching a low of 1.0205, while AUD/NZD reached a low of 1.2360.
Fixed Income/Commodities
(AU) Australia MoF (AOFM) sells A$600M in 4.75% 2027 Bonds; avg yield: 3.7485%; bid-to-cover: 2.26x
(US) API PETROLEUM INVENTORIES CRUDE: +905K V +2.5ME; GASOLINE: -1.44M V -1ME; DISTILLATE: -1.74M V -1.5ME; UTILIZATION: 84.4% V 83.7% W/W
(AU) Australia Newcastle weekly coal exports for week ended Feb 25th: +19.7% w/w
Equities
TM: Reports January domestic output -5.7% y/y
NSANY: Reports January domestic output -26.4% y/y
NSANY: Exec: Sees January-February sales in China falling as much as 20% y/y - Nikkei News.
Jupiter Telecom 4817.JP: KDDI and Sumitomo increase takeover offer by 12% to ¥123K/shr
Hyundai 005380.KR: Said to be ready to start mass production of hydrogen-powered cars - Korean press
MAH.AU: Reports H1 Net A$23.1M v A$13.6M y/y; Rev A$533M v A$423M y/y
WDC.AU: Reports FY12 Net A$1.7B v A$1.5B y/y, Rev A$2.2B v A$4.0B y/y
RIO.AU: CEO Walsh: Will reduce capital spending in wake of S&P outlook downgrade
FCG.NZ: Confirms FY12/13 payout forecast of NZ$5.90-6.00
BBY: Founder Schultze's efforts to take the company private appear to be stalling because of financing complications - financial press (update); -2.2% afterhours.
FSLR: Reports Q4 $2.04 v $1.75e, R$1.08B v $1.32Be; -11.0% afterhours.
EIX: Reports Q4 $1.79 v $1.04e, R$3.06B v $2.18Be; +4.1% afterhours.
PCLN: Reports Q4 $6.77 (adj) v $6.54e, R$1.19B v $1.18Be; +3.8% afterhours.