• Apple was seen lower by 3.4% in after-hours trade amid declining product revenues and soft Chinese performance.
• APAC stocks traded higher as regional bourses tracked the advances in global peers, while disappointing Caixin Services PMI did little to derail the momentum.
• European equity futures are indicative of a higher open with the Euro Stoxx 50 +0.5% after cash market closed up by 1.9% yesterday.
• DXY is softer and just above the 106 mark, EUR/USD has extended gains further above 1.0600.
• Looking ahead, highlights include German Trade Balance, EZ Unemployment, US NFP & ISM Services, Canadian Employment, Speeches from Fed's Barr & Kashkari, Earnings from BMW, Intesa Sanpaolo, Maersk & QSR.

US TRADE

EQUITIES

• US stocks notched firm gains and yields declined amid assumptions that the Fed could be done with hikes, while participants also digested the BoE pause, earnings and mixed economic data including dovish labour costs.
• SPX +1.89% at 4,318, NDX +1.74% at 14,920, DJI +1.70% at 33,839, RUT +2.67% at 1,714.
• Click here for a detailed summary.

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• US House passed legislation to provide USD 14bln in new aid to Israel although it faces resistance in the Senate and opposition from the White House as it fails to fund Ukraine or other foreign policy priorities, according to FT.
• UAW leaders voted to send the Stellantis (STLA) tentative agreement to members for a ratification vote, while the UAW said the strikers at the first Ford (F) local to walk out voted overwhelmingly to ratify the new contract.
• Apple Inc (AAPL) Q4 2023 (USD): EPS 1.46 (exp. 1.39), Rev. 89.5bln (exp. 89.28bln), Products rev. fell 5.3% Y/Y to 67.18bln (exp. 67.82bln), iPhone rev. rose 2.8% Y/Y to 43.81bln (exp. 43.73bln), Mac rev. fell 34% Y/Y to 7.61bln (exp. 8.76bln), iPad rev. fell 10% Y/Y to 6.44bln (exp. 6.12bln), Service rev. rose 16% Y/Y to USD 22.31bln (exp. 21.37bln), Greater China rev. fell 2.5% Y/Y to 15.08bln (exp. 17.01bln). Co. shares were seen lower by 3.4% in after-hours trade.

APAC TRADE

EQUITIES

• APAC stocks traded higher as regional bourses tracked the advances in global peers after the BoE kept rates unchanged and a surprise decline in US Labour Costs added to the dovish impulse, while the holiday closure in Japan and disappointing Caixin Services PMI did little to derail the momentum.
• ASX 200 was led higher again by tech and real estate as yields continued to ease, with sentiment also helped by the surprise expansion in quarterly retail trade.
• KOSPI was underpinned amid earnings releases including blockbuster results from SK Innovation.
• Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp conformed to the broad upbeat mood and largely shrugged off weaker Chinese Caixin PMI data and another substantial liquidity drain by the PBoC.
• US equity futures traded sideways ahead of the US jobs data and with only mild headwinds seen after Apple's earnings which beat on the top and bottom lines but product revenue fell and Greater China sales also disappointed.
• European equity futures are indicative of a higher open with the Euro Stoxx 50 +0.5% after cash markets closed up by 1.9% yesterday.

FX

• DXY marginally softened after the prior day’s losses and brief slip beneath the 106.00 level owing to mixed data including a rise in jobless claims and a surprise decline in labour costs, while the focus turns to the looming NFP report.
• EUR/USD was steady after it recently reclaimed the 1.0600 status, while there were several comments from ECB officials including Schnabel who refused to close the door to further rate hikes.
• GBP/USD remained near the 1.2200 level which was a focal point during yesterday’s post-BoE swings.
• USD/JPY was uneventful with trade constrained amid the absence of Tokyo participants for Culture Day.
• Antipodeans were rangebound in the pre-NFP twilight hours but are on track for their best week in four months.
• PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1796 vs exp. 7.3119 (prev. 7.1797)

FIXED INCOME

• 10-year UST futures traded sideways as they took a breather from the prior day’s advances and notable flattening with participants now awaiting the key US jobs data, while price action was also hampered by the lack of overnight cash treasuries trade due to the holiday closure in Tokyo.
• Bund futures were steady with price action stuck around the 130.00 level heading into the German trade data.

COMMODITIES

• Crude futures eked marginal gains in risk-on trade and amid geopolitical flare-up risks.
• Russian Deputy PM Novak said there are no plans to lift restrictions on fuel exports from Russia yet but added liberalisation will be possible when some volumes have nowhere to go, according to RIA.
• Kazakhstan's Energy Minister said 2024 oil output is seen at 90mln tons, while Kazakhstan is to export 4.5 BCM of gas to China this year and up to 11 BCM annually in the coming years, according to Reuters.
• Spot gold traded flat amid a quiet dollar and as participants brace for the NFP data.
• Copper futures were underpinned alongside the broad global heightened risk appetite.

CRYPTO

• Bitcoin extended beneath the USD 35,000 level as crypto was shunned in favour of more traditional risk assets.
• FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of defrauding FTX customers by a jury in New York with SBF found guilty on all seven criminal counts he faced at the trial.

NOTABLE ASIA-PAC HEADLINES

• China's Commerce Minister met with the Micron (MU) President on November 1st and said that China will continue to optimise the investment environment for foreign companies. China's Commerce Minister also told Micron's President they welcome Micron to deepen its footprint in the Chinese market and welcome the Co. to have better development on the premise of abiding by Chinese laws and regulations, according to Reuters.
• US Treasury Secretary Yellen repeated that full separation of the US and Chinese economies would have disastrous effects globally.

DATA RECAP

• Chinese Caixin Services PMI (Oct) 50.4 vs. Exp. 51.2 (Prev. 50.2)
• Chinese Caixin Composite PMI (Oct) 50.0 (Prev. 50.9)
• Australian Retail Trade (Q3) 0.2% vs. Exp. -0.2% (Prev. -0.5%)

GEOPOLITICS

ISRAEL-HAMAS

• IDF spokesman said the encirclement of Gaza City has been completed, according to journalist Amichai Stein via social media platform X.
• Lebanon's Hezbollah simultaneously attacked 19 positions in Israel along the border with Lebanon, according to senior Hezbollah sources. It was separately reported that IDF said large-scale raids to destroy Hezbollah sites are in response to the launching of missiles, according to Al Arabiya.
• Iran's Supreme Leader commented via social media platform X that the "...occupying entity is helpless and confused now, and without American support will be silenced within days".
• US intelligence assessment indicates that Iran and its proxies are seeking to avoid a broader war with Israel, while the US is also aware that Iran does not maintain perfect control of its umbrella of proxies. US officials are deeply concerned that the group’s internal politics may cause Hezbollah to escalate simmering tensions, according to CNN.
• US Vice President Harris said they are seriously considering a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, according to Al Arabiya. It was later reported that an Israeli official said PM Netanyahu is considering approving the US request for a temporary truce in which the government may agree to halt attacks for a few hours, while Israel will allow fuel to enter Gaza hospitals if it runs out, but under surveillance, according to Al Jazeera citing Israel Broadcasting Corp.
• White House's Kirby said the US is concerned about strikes on Israeli forces in the north but the White House has not seen evidence that Hezbollah is ready to go full force.
• Jordan's Foreign Minister will stress to US Secretary of State Blinken on Saturday the need to immediately end the Israeli war on Gaza, according to an official statement.

OTHER

• Russian attack hit civilian targets and a fire broke out in Ukraine's city of Kharkiv with casualties being clarified, according to the Mayor cited by Reuters.
• US Secretary of State Blinken said the US urges Moscow to hold its commitment to not resume nuclear testing.

EU/UK

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• ECB's Schnabel said they expect inflation to return to the target by 2025 with their current monetary policy stance and that the disinflation process during the last mile will be more uncertain, slower and bumpier. Schnabel added they cannot close the door to further rate hikes and that the Euro area economy is not in a deep recession but stagnating.