Dollar extends surge as bonds decline

Kuala Lumpur - The dollar extended gains at the highest in more than a decade as a stronger case for hiking US interest rates weighed on bonds and gold. Japanese stocks climbed, while emerging-market assets dropped.

The greenback’s strength was felt across Asia, with the Philippine peso dropping to an eight-year low and the yen near the weakest level in more than seven months. Japan’s Topix index climbed for a 10th straight session as investors returned from a holiday, while South Korea’s equity index lost 0.8%.

Ten-year Australian and New Zealand government debt yields rose for a second day, as gold traded near a nine-month low. Copper and zinc surged.

The selloff in bonds and emerging markets sparked by Donald Trump’s unexpected election as US president has resumed, after better-than-estimated data on durable goods orders and manufacturing helped keep bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike next month at 100%.

 Central bank officials saw a stronger case for policy tightening amid solidity in the labour market, with some saying a hike should take place in December, according to minutes of the November gathering. US equity benchmarks extended records last session before the Thanksgiving holiday.

"The dollar has been really strong in anticipation of Yellen’s move next month and that strength in the US dollar is ultimately going to mean that emerging market assets would be seen as disadvantaged,"  Nicholas Teo, a strategist at KGI Fraser Securities in Singapore, said by phone.

Stocks

The MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index slid 0.4% as of 3:18 in Tokyo, after two days of gains. The Topix climbed 0.9% to extend gains at its highest level since February, and stretching its winning streak to the longest since June 2015.

The Kospi index in South Korea lost 0.9%, falling for the first time in three days, while Jakarta’s benchmark gauge lost 1.2%.

The Straits Times Index rose 0.2%, wiping out a decline of 0.9% as Singapore cut the top end of its 2016 growth forecast, with exports remaining under pressure.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.3% and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index was little changed. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1%, trading near a 10-month high New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 Index climbed a second day, adding 0.5%.

S&P 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were little changed, after both underlying indexes climbed last session to fresh records.

Currencies

The yen weakened for a third day, losing 0.2% to 112.78 per dollar, following last session’s slide of as much as 1.7%. The currency is heading for its worst month since 2009.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, a gauge of the US currency versus 10 peers, added another 0.1% at its strongest level since at least 2005. The Bloomberg-JPMorgan Asia Dollar Index is trading at the weakest since 2009 - led by the Philippine peso’s plunge past 50 per dollar.

The South Korean won, Thailand baht, Malaysian ringgit and Indonesian rupiah each lost more than 0.3%.

Asia Dollar Index is trading at the weakest since 2009 - led by the Philippine peso’s plunge past 50 per dollar. The South Korean won, Thailand baht, Malaysian ringgit and Indonesian rupiah each lost more than 0.3%.

Bonds

Yields on 10-year Australian and New Zealand government notes rose by at least five basis points Treasuries due in a decade yielded 2.35% on Wednesday, up four basis points, or 0.04 percentage point.

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.2% to $48.06 a barrel after retreating 0.2% last session Iraq’s prime minister said the country will cut production as part of a broader OPEC supply deal, reversing the nation’s previous insistence for an exemption.

Gold was down 0.2% at $1 186.29 an ounce after breaking below the $1 200 level for the first time since February this week.

Gold is heading for the biggest monthly drop in more than three years Base metals surged. Copper jumped 3.1% on the London Metal Exchange, extending gains to the highest level in more than a year, while zinc headed for the strongest close since 2010.