Open Mar21

In Asian Equity Markets indices traded higher on Monday morning after the U.S. Federal Reserve announced it was keeping interest rates on hold, and indicated that no more rate hikes would be coming in 2019. In South Korea, the Kospi advanced 0.97 percent in morning trade as chipmaker SK Hynix jumped more than 6 percent. The Shenzhen composite rose 0.335 percent Japan's stock markets are closed on Thursday for a holiday. Australia's ASX 200, however, fell 0.32 percent, with the heavily weighted financial subindex declining 0.69 percent as bank shares sold off.

In Currency Markets the U.S. dollar nursed heavy losses in Asia on Thursday after the Federal Reserve stunned markets by abandoning all plans to raise rates this year, a signal its three-year campaign to normalize policy might be at an end. The Fed’s swerve sent the dollar sliding to 110.67 yen, with its 0.6 percent loss overnight the biggest drop since the flash crash of early January. The euro flew to a seven-week peak and was last trading at $1.1424, a world away from its recent low of $1.1177. That left the dollar down at 95.929 against a basket of currencies, having lost 0.5 percent overnight.

In Commodities Markets oil prices edged lower on Thursday, retreating from a four-month peak, as fears of a slowing global economy weighed on market sentiment. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $60.16 per barrel, down 7 cents, or 0.1 percent, from their last settlement. WTI had earlier hit a high of $60.19 a barrel - the highest since Nov. 12. International Brent crude oil futures were at $68.47 a barrel, down 3 cents from their last close. Brent touched $68.57 a barrel on Wednesday, its highest since Nov. 13.

In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 and the Dow ended lower on Wednesday as interest rate-sensitive financial stocks dragged down the indexes after the U.S. Federal Reserve affirmed a dovish monetary policy stance. The S&P 500 lost 0.29 percent, to 2,824.23 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.07 percent, to 7,728.97. Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, six ended the session in negative territory. General Mills Inc. rose 2.2 percent after the packaged food company reported better-than-expected quarterly profit and boosted its full-year forecast.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasuries rallied on Wednesday, taking the benchmark 10-year yield to a 14-month low, after the Federal Reserve said it would hold interest rates steady and its policymakers abandoned projections for further rate hikes this year while flagging an expected economic slowdown. The two-year Treasury yield logged its largest daily decline since Jan. 3 and was last at 2.402 percent. The benchmark 10-year yield, which reflects investor sentiment about the overall health of the economy, fell by as much as 8 basis points to the lowest since January 2018 and was last at 2.539 percent.