Monday Morning Briefing: Most Asian Markets Shut; China’s Manufacturing Stable

U.S. equity markets ended 2016 on a negative note, posting its longest losing streak since Donald Trump's election victory on November 8.

Investors in India will have few cues to work with as equity markets in China, Japan, Hong Kong, and Australia are all shut on account of the new year holiday. Most major commodity trading centres too are shut.

Chinese Economy Stabilises

China's official factory gauge stabilised near a post-2012 high in December while the services gauge remained elevated. The manufacturing purchasing managers index for December stood at 51.4, in-line with the 51.5 median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The official gauge stood at 51.7 mark in November.

Non-manufacturing services PMI stood at 54.5 in December compared to 54.7 in the previous month.

North Korea's Missile Threat

Tensions rose in the Asia-Pacific region after North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un said that the country was in the 'final stages' of preparations to test-fire an inter-continental ballistic missile.

North Korea “will continue to strengthen its ability based on nuclear might to mount a preemptive attack,” Kim said in a televised address, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

U.S. President-elect Trump, who takes office on January 20, likened Kim to a 'maniac' during his campaign while suggesting he could meet the North Korean leader for nuclear talks.

North Korea has conducted three nuclear tests under Kim and launched a series of long-range rockets.

2016: A Year Of Gains

U.S. equity markets posted their longest losing streak since Trump's victory, but managed to close the year out with the fourth annual gain since 2011.

The S&P 500 Index fell to its lowest level since December 7 after a 0.5 percent fall on Friday. The index rose 11.24 percent in 2016.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied almost 15 percent in 2016, briefly flirting with the 20,000 mark before ending the year nearly 250 points adrift of the milestone.

The dollar fell for the second straight day on Friday but registered its fourth consecutive year of gains. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2 percent, adding to Thursday's 0.5 percent cut. The gauge rose 2.8 percent in 2016, to clock its highest yearly gain since 2011.

Stellar Year For Oil

Crude oil posted its best year since 2011 after prices advanced as much as 45 percent in 2016. OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) and other non-member producing nations are set to implement the production cut starting today.

West Texas Intermediate Crude closed flat at $53.72 per barrel on Friday.

Also Read: Hedge Funds Bet Oil Rally to Extend Into 2017 as Output Cuts Hit

Weak Start To 2017?

Indian equity benchmarks look set to kickstart 2017 on a weak note as the SGX Nifty Index dropped 0.35 percent to 8,156 as of 7:00 a.m.

A late December rally ensured the Indian stock markets posted their fourth yearly advance in five years. While the S&P BSE Sensex ended the year with gains of 1.9 percent, the NSE Nifty 50 Index rose 3 percent for the year.

Also Read: 2016 In 16 Charts

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