Live updates on US CPI and China inflation

The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell by more than 2%, affected by the cyclical consumer goods sector.

Leading the index’s losses is e-commerce giant JD.com, which fell as much as 12% to its lowest level in a year. Chow Tai Fook Jewelry shares fell 5.19%, and Haidilao shares lost 4.18%. Automotive company Zhongsheng Group shares fell 4.94%.

Other heavyweight indices are also in the red. Baidu shares fell by 5.17%, while Alibaba and Meituan shares fell by 3.44% and 3.89%, respectively.

Among other stocks that pushed the index down, China Merchants Bank fell by 1.27%, while Ping An Insurance lost 1.67%. HSBC Holdings shares also fell by 1.42%.

-Li Ying Shan

JD.com shares fell to their lowest levels in a year, hit by a series of broker cuts and target price revisions due to the possibility of weak retail growth for the Chinese e-commerce giant.

JD.com shares fell 12.1% to HK$27.83 in early trading on Friday in Hong Kong, an underperformance of the 2.1% loss on the benchmark Hang Seng Index. JD.com’s losses this year have halved its market value since the beginning of the year.

Morgan Stanley analysts downgraded JD.com to Equal Weight from Overweight, While Jeffries reduced the target price for JD.com’s listing on the Nasdaq stock exchange from $97 to $80 per share.

-Li Ying Shan

China recorded a smaller-than-expected decline in exports in September compared to last year, while imports fell, according to customs data released on Friday.

Exports fell by 6.2% last month from a year ago, less than Reuters forecasts of a 7.6% decline. Likewise, imports also fell by 6.2% in US dollar terms in September compared to a year ago – slightly more than the 6% decline expected in the Reuters poll.

China’s exports fell on an annual basis every month this year starting in May. The last positive reading for imports on an annual basis was in September last year.

For more, please read this story.

—Evelyn Cheng, Li Ying Shan

Consumer prices in China stabilized in September, while factory gate prices saw slow year-on-year declines for a third month.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that the consumer price index remained flat year-on-year in September. This was lower than the average estimate for a 0.2 percent increase in a Reuters poll.

China’s producer price index fell 2.5% from a year earlier, weaker than economists’ expectations for a 2.4% decline.

The tepid prices underscore what senior Chinese leaders described as a “zigzagging” economic recovery after the country emerged from the strict coronavirus restrictions it imposed at the end of last year.

– Clement Tan, Li Ying Shan

Central Bank of Singapore It kept its monetary policy unchanged For the second meeting in a row, the Bank maintained the nominal effective exchange rate policy band for the Singapore dollar at an increased rate.

The Singaporean central bank manages monetary policy through exchange rate settings, rather than interest rates.

It points the Singapore dollar against an undisclosed basket of the currencies of its major trading partners, and adjusts the pace at which it rises or falls by adjusting the slope, width and center of the currency range. The Monetary Authority of Singapore does not disclose any details regarding this scope.

Core inflation in the Southeast Asian country was 3.4% year-on-year for August, down from July figures.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore said in a statement on Friday that it expects core inflation to fall to between 2.5% and 3.0% year-on-year by December. “The outlook for the Singaporean economy is weak in the near term but is expected to gradually improve in the second half of 2024.”

-Li Ying Shan

Singapore’s GDP Advanced estimates from the government showed that gross domestic product grew faster than expected and expanded by 0.7% year-on-year in the third quarter.

The construction sector grew by 6% year-on-year, continuing its growth of 7.7% in the previous quarter.

A statement issued by the Ministry of Trade and Industry said, “Growth was supported by expansions in production in the building and construction sectors in the public and private sectors.”

Conversely, Singapore’s manufacturing sector contracted by 5%. Its poor performance was due to lower output in all manufacturing groups, except for the transportation engineering group.

On a seasonally adjusted quarterly basis, Singapore’s GDP grew by 1%, faster than the previous quarter’s expansion of 0.1%.

-Li Ying Shan

Inflation data in India rose by 5.02% On a yearly basis for September, it fell to a three-month low on the back of lower vegetable prices.

The reading was lower than the expectations of economists polled by Reuters for an increase of 5.5%, and is still higher than the central bank’s target of 4%.

Just last week, the Reserve Bank of India kept interest rates steady at 6.5%.

-Li Ying Shan

Thursday’s September consumer price report was “modestly hotter than expected” and insufficient to prevent the Fed from raising interest rates again before the end of 2023, according to Wolfe Research chief investment strategist Chris Sinek.

“Our feeling is that the FOMC will need to see core inflation decline below 4% and we believe the downward trend will continue to pause and remain on hold for an extended period,” Sinek wrote to clients.

In the medium term, Sinek believes that the delayed impact of the Fed’s rate hikes since March 2022 will ultimately trigger “economic disappointments, growing recession fears and a downward revision cycle for stock earnings in the coming months,” and that lower interest rates will not be enough to offset Economic recession. Bearish bias.

-Scott Schnepper, Michael Bloom

Stronger economic growth, accelerating government spending, and bottoming out inflation are just some of the reasons why many analysts are bullish on India – and asset management firm AllianceBernstein is no exception.

Analysts expect the South Asian country to deliver “one of the highest returns among major markets worldwide over the next few years.”

AllianceBernstein has revealed some of its favorite stocks in the country, including two new names on its radar.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

– Amala Balakrishner

AI-related stocks have soared as the topic has gained traction this year, with investors piling into favorites like Nvidia and Microsoft.

But according to Deepwater Asset Management, there is one under-the-radar AI stock that will be essential to deploying AI infrastructure over the long term.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

-Weezin Tan

Oil prices rebounded on Thursday, with US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rising 1.6% to trade just below $85 a barrel. The move erased some of Wednesday’s declines, and the price of oil remains below Monday’s highs and late September levels, when WTI traded above $90 a barrel.

Helima Croft, commodities strategist at RBC Capital Markets, said on “Squawk on the Street.” a report A surprise increase in gasoline prices in the United States last week helped keep prices under control despite fears that the war between Israel and Hamas could expand and disrupt global oil supplies.

“The question is what will win this year,” Croft said. “That broader concern about the macro backdrop – potentially weak demand – or questions about security of supply.”

-Jesse Pound

Birkenstock’s recent initial public offering (IPO) is expected to help boost shares of the British footwear brand, according to Investec analysts.

German shoe brand Birkenstock’s debut on the New York Stock Exchange earlier this week gave investors and analysts insight into the financials and metrics of a large, single-brand shoe company for the first time. Using this information as a benchmark, Investec analysts believe there is significant growth potential for London-listed stocks that the market may be undervaluing.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

-Ganesh Rao