- Treasuries fell and Asian stocks were mixed as investors assessed the economic risks posed by rising inflation. To alleviate price pressures, New Zealand implemented its largest interest-rate hike in 22 years.
- Japan's stock market rose, but Hong Kong and China fell. Futures signals were muddy with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts rising, but those in Europe fell.
- Following a half-point rate hike, New Zealand's dollar was among the best performers in the group-of-10 currency basket, highlighting the trend of sharp monetary tightening across a range of economies.
- The session in the United States was shaped by inflation data, which came in at 8.5% for the headline figure, the highest in four decades, but was better-than-expected at the core level, which excludes volatile food and energy prices.
- Treasuries pared an advance sparked by the core reading. While the latter has caused traders to reduce their expectations for how aggressively the Fed will raise interest rates, cost pressures remain a major risk. The dollar index remained stable.
- Oil surpassed $100 per barrel after Russian President Putin vowed to continue the war in Ukraine and China partially relaxed commodity curbs.