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Asian stocks rise as traders weigh US debt, trade deals

Asian stocks rise as traders weigh US debt, trade deals
Reuters
By Reuters
20 May 2025
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As Moody's gives the US credit a slap on the wrist, investors seem less fazed, while Asian stocks perk up and everyone holds their breath for the Reserve Bank of Australia's expected rate cut.




  • Investors shrug off Moody's US credit downgrade

  • Dollar drifts as selloff in Treasuries ease

  • Eyes on RBA policy decision; rate cut expected




SINGAPORE, May 20 (Reuters) - Asian stocks rose on Tuesday while US Treasury yields steadied allowing a bit of a breathing room for the US dollar as investors took stock of the debt load of the world's biggest economy and awaited trade deals.

Moody's downgrade of its rating for US sovereign credit last week - due to concerns about that nation's growing $36 trillion debt pile - led to a selloff in Treasuries on Monday but that stabilised by Asian trading hours on Tuesday.



"The Moody's downgrade was a temporary shock and rather meaningless in the bigger picture," said Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com.

"But then we're not really being fed any kind of fresh new news for investors to buy into... We haven't gotten any new deals coming through."

With little indication of trade deals on the way, markets are struggling for direction, analysts said.

The 30-year bond yield was 3.5 basis points lower at 4.906% after hitting an 18-month high of 5.037% in the previous trading session. Major US stock indexes recovered from early loss to end mostly flat.




That left the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan 0.36% higher, hovering near the seven-month high touched last week. Japan's Nikkei gained 0.65% in early trade.

Chinese stocks were steady at the open after the local central bank cut benchmark lending rates for the first time since October, while five of China's biggest state-owned banks also lowered deposit interest rates.

The blue-chip index was 0.15% higher whereas Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index  rose 1%.

US Federal Reserve officials took on cautiously the ramifications of the Moody's downgrade and unsettled market conditions as they continued to navigate an uncertain economic environment in the wake of erratic US trade action.



While not an imminent issue for the Fed, higher borrowing costs tied to a deteriorating US financial position could make credit generally more expensive and create restraint on economic activity.




Investors will also watch out for a policy decision from the Reserve Bank of Australia, with cuts to interest rates widely expected. The Australian dollar was a tad weaker at $0.64485.

In commodities, oil prices were mixed as investors contended with a potential breakdown in talks between the US and Iran over the latter's nuclear activity and weakened prospects of more Iranian supply entering the market.


Reporting by Ankur Banerjee and Johann M. Cherian in Singapore; Editing by Christopher Cushing

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