· U.S. stocks fell on Friday from record-high levels as investors took profit and data showed slower-than-expected December U.S. jobs growth, but the major indexes posted gains for the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 133.13 points, or 0.46%, to 28,823.77, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 9.35 points, or 0.29%, to 3,265.35 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 24.57 points, or 0.27%, to 9,178.86.
Domestic jobs increased by 145,000 last month, below the forecast for a 164,000 rise, the U.S. government data showed, as the pace of hiring remained more than enough to keep the longest economic expansion in history on track.
Friday’s report also showed the jobless rate held near a 50-year low of 3.5% and average hourly earnings rose 0.1% in the previous month.
That has given investors reason to take some profit, but next week the focus will turn to earnings.
· Stocks in Asia were subdued on Monday morning as investors await the signing of a phase-one trade deal between the U.S. and China.
The S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.60% in early trade. Major miners and oil stocks declined. Fortescue Metals was down 1.12%, while BHP Group lost 0.84%, and Rio Tinto was off by 0.71%. Among oil stocks, Origin Energy declined more than 1%, Woodside Petroleum was down 0.75%, and Santos tumbled 0.68%.
Gold stocks in Australia, however, rallied to erase last week’s losses after prices fell following declining U.S.-Iran escalation risks. Evolution Mining surged almost 2%, and Kingsgate Consolidated rose 2.2%. Newcrest Mining was up 0.75%.
In South Korea, the Kospi edged up 0.12%. Japan’s markets are closed for a holiday on Monday.
This week Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese officials are due to sign the long-awaited phase one trade deal between both countries, which have been embroiled in a long-running trade dispute. China’s Vice Premier Liu He, who leads the Chinese negotiation team in the trade talks, is set to visit Washington from today, the country’s commerce ministry said.
· Thai parliament passes delayed 2020 budget bill to revive economy
Thailand’s parliament on Saturday passed a delayed draft budget bill for the 2020 fiscal year aimed at boosting Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, which is growing at its slowest pace in years.
The budget’s approval was key for the survival of the coalition government, which has a slim majority in parliament. A defeat would have forced former junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha’s government to either resign or dissolve parliament.
After a four-day debate, the draft bill’s second and third readings passed with 253 votes. There were 196 abstentions in the 450-member parliament.
The proposed budget foresees a 7% rise in overall spending to 3.2 trillion baht ($105.89 billion) for the fiscal year that began on Oct. 1. It sets a deficit of 469 billion baht, up 4.2% from the 2019 fiscal year.
The draft bill is expected to come into effect in February following a vote in the senate, which meets on Jan. 20, and the king’s endorsement, Budget Bureau chief Dechapiwat Na Songkhla told Reuters.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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