• Wall Street equities recovered on May 2, with the DJI up by +0.85%, the S&P 500 rose by +0.91%, and the Nasdaq closed up by +1.51%.
• US stocks closed moderately higher on Thursday, buoyed by chip stocks after a +9% surge in Qualcomm. The broader market also received support from Fed Chair Powell's remarks suggesting no imminent interest rate hikes. Additionally, stocks received a boost as the OECD upgraded its 2024 global growth forecast to +3.1% from +2.9% in February, citing more balanced risks.
• US Treasury 10-yr yields declined by -5.0 bps to 4.58%, while 2-yr yields dropped by -9.0 bps to 4.87%. Powell’s remarks eased concerns over rising yields, leading to 12 bps drop in the 10-yr Treasury yield over the last two trading sessions, marking its lowest level in three weeks.
• Weekly US initial unemployment claims remained unchanged at 208,000, defying expectations of an increase to 211,000, signaling continued strength in the labor market.
• In Q1, US nonfarm productivity increased by +0.3%, falling short of expectations for a +0.5% rise. Meanwhile, Q1 unit labor costs rose by +4.7%, surpassing expectations for a +4.0% increase.
• In Asia, The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) held its base rate steady at 5.75% on May 2nd, shortly after the US Federal Reserve decided to keep its key interest rate unchanged.
• Global bond yields were mixed on Wednesday; The German bund yield fell by -4.2 bps to 2.54%, while the UK 10-yr gilt yield slid by -8.0 bps to 4.29% and the Japanese 10-yr JGB yield rose by +1.00 bps to 0.90%.
