- European Govt. yields fall across the board with France, Belgium, Netherlands and Austria 10-year all at fresh record lows Notes/Observations
- The Nikkei 225 reached multi-year highs of 13,225 in early trade while USD/JPY hit fresh trend high of 97.16 before giving back moves
- huge spike in JGB yields from 0.33% to 0.58% with trading halted on two occasions. Dealers cited North Korea tensions as a factor
- France, Belgium, Netherlands and Austria 10-yr bond Govt yields hit fresh record lows
- (JP) Japan Feb Preliminary Leading Index CI: 97.5 v 97.3e; Coincident Index CI: v 92.1 v 91.9e
- (RU) Russia Narrow Money Supply Narrow w/e Apr 1st (RUB): 7.41T v 7.50T prior
- (FI) Finland Jan GDP Indicator WD: -2.3% v -1.7% prior
- (HU) Hungary Mar FX Reserves: €35.5B v €35.9B prio
- (UK) Mar Halifax House Prices M/M: 0.2% v 0.2%e; 3M/Y: 1.1% v 1.1%e
- (HU) Hungary Feb Preliminary Industrial Production M/M: 0.3% v 2.9% prior; Y/Y: -1.1% v -0.9%e
- (CH) Swiss Mar Foreign Currency Reserves (CHF): 438.3B v 427.0Be (Record high)
- (AT) Austria Mar Wholesale Price Index M/M: -1.1% v +0.6% prior; Y/Y: -1.3% v +1.2% prior
- (SE) Sweden Feb Service Production M/M: 0.9% v 0.5%e; Y/Y: 2.1% v 1.4%e
- (UK) Mar New Car Registrations Y/Y: 5.9% v 7.9% prior
- (CZ) Czech Mar International Reserves: $44.4B v $45.4B prior
- (EU) Euro Zone Feb Retail Sales M/M: -0.3% v -0.4%e; Y/Y: -1.4% v -1.2%e
- (IC) Iceland Mar Preliminary Trade Balance (ISK): 8.9B v 7.6B prior
- (IN) India sold total INR150B vs. INR150B indicated in 2026, 2032 and 2042 bonds
- UK movers [Punch Taverns +10% (guided FY results in line with expectations), ENRC +5% (broker commentary), Drax Group +2.5% (broker commentary) ; Ladbrokes -5% (broker commentary),EasyJet -3% (tracked weakness in Asian airlines on bird flu concerns), Asos -2.5% ( broker commentary)]
- Germany movers [Munich Re +2.5% (broker commentary); Lufthansa -3.5% (tracked weakness in Asian airlines on bird flu concerns), Gerresheimer -3% (broker commentary)]
SPEAKERS/FIXED INCOME/FX/COMMODITIES/ERRATUM
Equities
FTSE 100 -0.70% at 6,300, DAX -0.20% at 7,804, CAC-40 -0.20% at 3,717, IBEX-35 +0.60% at 7,895, FTSE MIB +0.80% at 15,280, SMI -0.40% at 7,734, S&P 500 Futures -0.20% at 1,551
European equity markets are trading mixed as traders assess the rise in volatility related to Japanese government bonds, following the additional easing measures out of the BoJ. Investors are also focusing on the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, which will be released later today. The Italian FTSE MIB and Spanish IBEX-35 have outperformed, amid gains in peripheral government bond prices. The FTSE 100 is underperforming and lower for the third straight session. Most European banks are trading higher, amid outperformance in shares of Santander and UniCredit. Resource related shares are mixed, in line with what has been seen for commodity prices. Shares of Glencore and Xstrata are lower by over 2%, as the companies continue to seek regulatory approval for their merger transaction in China. The larger European airlines have tracked the weakness seen in their Asian counterparts, amid the bird flu concerns in China (Air France -6.5%, Easyjet -4.5%, Lufthansa -4%).