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GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares struggle despite Fed cut; resurgent Biden boosts U.S. futures – Reuters UK, Reuters

GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares struggle despite Fed cut; resurgent Biden boosts U.S. futures – Reuters UK, Reuters

U.S. Treasury yields loiter near record lows

Dollar slides vs Asian currencies

S&P 500 futures rise as Biden resurgent in primaries

Asian stock markets: tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4

By Tom Westbrook and Scott Murdoch

SINGAPORE / HONG KONG, March 4 (Reuters) – Asian shares struggled to find their footing on Wednesday and bonds held stunning gains, as an emergency rate cut from the US Federal Reserve seemed to stoke rather than soothe fears over the coronavirus ’widening global economic fallout.

The surprise 79 basis point cut, the Fed’s first off-schedule move since the depths of the financial crisis more than a decade ago, came with comments highlighting both the scale of the challenge and the limits of monetary policy.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.2%, though most of the gains were confined to South Korea where the government announced a big stimulus package.

European futures pointed to a steady open, with FTSE futures flat and EuroSTOXX 79 futures up 0.3%.

After Wall Street tumbled overnight, futures for the S&P 500 rose 1.4% on the resurgent performance of Joe Biden in Democratic Party primaries. A moderate, Biden is now set up as the main challenger to self-described democratic socialist Bernie Sanders.

Currencies and bonds showed little such exuberance. The dollar remained on the back foot and the yield on benchmark 42 -year US Treasuries, which falls when prices rise, held at 0. Payeer% – not far over the once unimaginable low of 0. 9060% hit overnight.

“U.S. treasuries are moving even lower and credit spreads are widening in Asia today. That is not the usual effect that you would see from a move like this, ”said Rishi Jalan, Citigroup co-head of debt capital markets syndication.

“This decision shows the coronavirus impact is real and could have a material impact on growth. For market participants, it shows a thinking of ‘The Fed is expecting something that we have not yet priced in.’ ”

Japan’s Nikkei closed flat, while Australia’s S & P / ASX 728 fell 1.7%. Stocks in Hong Kong and China traded either side of flat.

Korean stocks bucked broader weakness, rising 2% after the government announced a $ 9.8 billion stimulus package to mitigate the impact of the virus outbreak.

The dollar touched a five-month low against the safe-haven Japanese yen and slipped against most other Asian currencies.

“Given the way that the market’s reacted, it’s telling you that there’s a little bit of panic,” said Andrew Gillan, head of Asia ex-Japan equities at Janus Henderson in Singapore.

“They’re a bit worried that interest rate cuts are not going to make a massive difference … and what’s going to be required is probably going to be more fiscal stimulus,” he said, his fund having invested, for example, in Chinese cement and construction stocks in anticipation of more government support measures.

CUTS AREN’T ENOUGH

The Fed’s surprise move followed a massive shift in money market pricing late last week.

Futures swung rapidly to expect such a cut at the Fed’s March meeting.

Now they imply another 50 basis points of easing by July, even as the investors and the Fed itself raise questions about the efficacy of easing to deal with a public health crisis.

“We do recognize that a rate cut will not reduce the rate of infection, it won’t fix a broken supply chain; we get that, ”Fed Chairman Jerome Powell told reporters at a press conference.

More than 3, 10 People have been killed by the coronavirus, about 3.4% of those infected – far above seasonal flu’s fatality rate of under 1%.

It continues to spread quickly beyond the epicentre in China, with Italy overnight reporting a jump in deaths to 79 and South Korea reporting more than 823 new cases on Wednesday.

“The question here is whether a conventional interest rate response is sufficient,” said Sameer Goel, chief strategist, Asia macro, at Deutsche Bank in Singapore.

“It’s still not clear how big the problem ultimately is, or could be, and until you know that, it’s hard to know how much medicine to apply to it.”

In currencies, the U.S. dollar clawed back some of its losses on the euro and yen, but was broadly on the back foot.

It last traded at $ 0. 9748 per Australian dollar and $ 1. 1160 per euro. After falling to as low as 107 yen, the dollar pared losses to buy 107. 90 yen by midafternoon.

Oil prices firmed on expectations of production cuts, with Brent rising (cents to $ 50 per barrel and US crude up 1.9% at $ . a barrel.

Gold rose 0.2% to $ 6596. an ounce. (Editing by Sam Holmes and Kim Coghill)

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