Market Commentary: Thursday 12th February

Asian equities extended their rally for a fifth straight session, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 0.6% to a record and widening its lead over U.S. peers this year. The regional gauge is up around 13% year to date versus a 1.4% gain for the S&P 500, with South Korea the standout performer, up roughly 30%. Futures pointed to gains in Europe and a firmer U.S. open.

Treasuries held losses after stronger U.S. jobs data prompted traders to push back expectations for the next Federal Reserve rate cut to July from June. The U.S. added 130,000 jobs in January, double forecasts, lifting the 10-year yield to 4.18%. Attention now turns to Friday’s inflation report, which could reinforce a “higher-for-longer” policy outlook if price pressures remain sticky.

Asia’s outperformance is being driven by relatively cheaper valuations and positioning around beneficiaries of the AI build-out, as investors rotate away from the biggest U.S. spenders toward hardware and supply-chain enablers. Elsewhere, Bitcoin slipped back toward $67,000, the dollar edged higher, oil rose on Middle East tensions, and gold eased as stronger U.S. data tempered rate-cut expectations.

• S&P 500 futures +0.2%
• Nasdaq 100 futures unchanged
• U.S. 10-year yield unchanged ~4.18%
• Bitcoin −1.0% to $67,074
• Gold −0.5% to $5,061
• WTI +0.3% to $64.81

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