- Stocks in Asia remained steady as investors assessed the global economic recovery's endurance against the threats posed by the Federal Reserve's tightening monetary policy and Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.
- Japanese, Chinese, and Hong Kong stocks also varied in small ranges. After technology stocks helped the S&P 500 index close at a more than six-week high, US futures swung between red and green.
- Treasury yields held losses, bringing the 10-yr yield back to levels last seen in 2019. Oil prices fell as EU officials held off on taking new efforts to curb Russian crude imports.
- Investors are still dealing with the fallout from Russia's invasion and isolation, notably rising raw-material costs, which have fuelled forecasts of greater inflation and more aggressive Fed rate hikes.
- The yen has recovered from a long-term decline against the dollar, owing in part to monetary policy divergence between the US and a still-dovish Japan. According to Societe Generale SA strategist Albert Edwards, the yen might collapse further more to 1990 lows. The value of a dollar index fell.
