Weekly Market Recap

Asia Pacific

22/04/2019

Week in review

Week ahead

23/04 – U.S. – New Home
25/04 – U.S. – Durable Orders
25/04 – JP – BoJ policy rate
26/04 – U.S. – GDP

Thought of the week

China’s gross domestic product grew 6.4% year-over-year in 1Q19, above market expectations of 6.3% and flat from 4Q18. March data for industrial production, retail sales and fixed asset investments also showed improvement, supporting our view that policy stimulus is feeding through to the real economy. This momentum will likely continue in the months ahead, with the recent surge in credit growth and improving sentiment from a possible trade agreement between U.S. and China. Though the uptick in economic data may tone down the level of support Chinese policymakers will provide, we expect them to remain vigilant and boost the economy appropriately if it softens. Hence, the market may need to re-price monetary easing expectations amid better-than-expected growth. Overall, the pick-up in economic data strengthens the fundamental case for A-shares, but investors should remain watchful for any signs of weakness amid an uncertain global growth environment.

Chart of the week

Asian equity markets valuations

Source: CEIC, National Bureau of Statistics of China, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
All returns in local currency unless stated otherwise.
*Currencies’ return are based on foreign currencies per U.S. dollar. An appreciation of the foreign currency against the U.S. dollar would be positive and a depreciation of the foreign currency against the U.S. dollar would be negative.

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