China manufacturing PMI, yen intervention

South Korea's central bank may consider buying gold in the mid- to long-term, according to a report from Reuters. The Bank of Korea has not made any gold purchases since 2013.

However, Kwon Min-soo, head of the BOK reserve management group told Reuters that the central bank will not immediately purchase more gold.

Kwon said “numerous factors need to be weighed to ensure the right circumstances for such purchases,” including the level of foreign exchange reserves and a stable foreign exchange market.

— Lim Hui Jie, Reuters

Japan's factory output rose 3.8% month on month in March, a sharp reversal from the 0.6% fall seen in February and beating expectations of a 3.5% gain from economists polled by Reuters.

The ministry of economy, trade and industry said that the production of motor vehicles and production machinery were the main contributors to the increase, while declines were due to the metals and chemicals industries.

On a year-on-year basis, industrial production fell 6.7% in March.

— Lim Hui Jie

South Korea's industrial production fell to its lowest level in 15 months in March, according to data released by the government.

Industrial production in March fell 3.2% month over month on a seasonally adjusted basis, after rising 2.9% in February.

The March reading also marked the sharpest fall in industrial production since December 2022, according to LSEG data.

The reading fell short of a Reuters poll expectation of a 0.6% month-on-month increase.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

The volatility seen in the yen was due to an intervention by Japanese authorities, The Wall Street Journal reported late Monday.

Citing people familiar with the matter, WSJ reported that Japan intervened to prop up the yen by selling US dollars and buying up yen.

The currency had weakened to a 34-year low of 160.03 against the greenback, before suddenly strengthening to around the 155 level.

Japan's top currency diplomat Masato Kanda declined to comment on whether the finance ministry had intervened, adding that authorities were ready to deal with foreign exchange matters “24 hours,” Reuters reported on Tuesday.

— Lim Hui Jie

Balance sheets “look healthy,” cash flow generation is “attractive,” and dividends and buybacks are set to be resilient, Goldman Sachs says.

“Shareholder returns are poised to reach an all-time high,” the bank said in an April 23 note.

But not all stocks offering buybacks and dividends are equal, Goldman said.

It highlighted its baskets of buyback stocks for a diversified strategy. This basket offers a high single-digit yield with roughly 4% via buybacks plus 4% via dividends — with a sector breakdown as close as possible to the market, said Goldman.

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— Weizhen Tan

Bank of America sees good news in the week ahead for equities, with risk skewed to the upside.

“Our economists see no sign of stagflation and expect a continued manufacturing recovery and strong job growth, which should be positive for stocks,” wrote strategist Ohsung Kwon in a note from Monday.

Kwon elaborated that this week's manufacturing report should indicate that the manufacturing recession has ended. Additionally, Friday's April jobs report is also likely to indicate strength and “little sign of slowing momentum in the labor market,” the strategist noted.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Sixteen stocks in the S&P 500 hit new 52-week highs during Monday's trading session.

Of these names, nine stocks traded at their new all-time highs. These include:

• Chipotle Mexican Grill trading at all-time-high levels back to its initial public offering in January 2006
• Royal Caribbean trading at all-time-high levels back to its IPO in April 1993
• Tractor Supply trading at all-time highs back to its IPO in 1994 after being taken private by an LBO in 1982
• Goldman Sachs trading at all-time-high levels back to its IPO in May 1999
• Carrier Global trading at all-time highs back to its spin-off from United Technologies in March 2020
• Leidos Holdings trading at all-time-high levels back to the SAIC IPO in October 2006
• Trane Technologies trading at all-time-high levels back through Ingersoll Rand's history, before its recent merger with Gardner Denver
• Veralto trading at all-time highs back to its spin-off from Danaher in October 2023
• Amphenol trading at all-time-high levels since its IPO in 1991

— Lisa Kailai Han, Christopher Hayes

Crude oil futures fell by $1 on Monday as the US Secretary of State made a renewed diplomatic push in the Middle East to secure a cease-fire in Gaza and head off an Israeli offensive against Rafah.

A successful cease-fire agreement would likely further ease the geopolitical risk premium factored into oil prices on fears that the war in Gaza could trigger a broader conflict in the Middle East that disrupts crude supplies.

West Texas Intermediate futures were down $1.15, or 1.37%, at $82.70 a barrel. Brent futures fell $1.15, or 1.28%, to $88.35 a barrel. US crude oil and the global benchmark have gained more than 14% this year.

— Spencer Kimball