· Asian shares slipped on Friday, erasing early gains, while gold shone and oil prices spiked after U.S. air strikes in Iraq killed a top Iranian commander, heightening geopolitical tensions.
Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force and top Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis were killed early on Friday in a U.S. air strike on their convoy at Baghdad airport, prompting Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to vow harsh revenge.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS had touched its highest point since June 15, 2018 in early trade, but fell after reports of the air strike emerged. It was last down 0.16%.
· China stocks slipped on Friday, but finished the first week of a new decade higher with a five-week winning streak as Beijing eased monetary policy to shore up the economy even as investors cheered a thaw in Sino-U.S. trade tensions.
The blue-chip CSI300 index fell 0.2% to 4,144.96, while the Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.1% to 3,083.79.
For the week, CSI300 was up 3.1%, while SSEC advanced 2.6%, both logging fifth week of gains in a row.
On the trade front, investors were expecting a signing of a Phase 1 trade deal between China and the U.S. on Jan. 15.
The market got another lift from Beijing’s latest policy support for the economy going into the new year.
China’s central bank said on Wednesday it was cutting the amount of cash that all banks must hold as reserves, releasing around 800 billion yuan ($114.76 billion) in funds to shore up the slowing economy.
The People’s Bank of China has now cut the banks’ reserve requirement ratio (RRR) eight times since early 2018 to free up more funds for banks to lend as economic growth slows to the weakest pace in nearly 30 years.
· European stocks opened lower on Friday as geopolitical tensions spiked after U.S. airstrikes in Iraq killed a top Iranian military commander.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 slid 0.6% in early trade, travel and leisure stocks falling 1.3% to lead losses as all sectors traded in the red except oil and gas, which surged 0.9% on the back of renewed unrest in the Middle East.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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