Asian Stock Market Are Mostly Up Ahead Of US Inflation Report

In today’s trading, Asian stocks were poised for a fifth consecutive month of gains on Friday, driven by the growing belief that cooling US inflation could lead the Federal Reserve to ease rates this year. 

 

 

Today is packed with risk events for markets after a relatively quiet week, with the focus on May’s US core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index set to be released later today. 

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 has increased by 0.4% reaching 39,583.08. The government reported that industrial production exceeded forecasts in May, rising by 2.8%, while the unemployment rate remained steady at 2.6% compared to the previous month. 

Traders drove the Japanese yen to as low as 161.27 per dollar, challenging Tokyo officials who had intervened in the forex markets twice in April and May following the yen’s decline. Although Vice Finance Minister Masato Kanda stated this week that the government was ready to act 24/7, analysts believe the authorities are more concerned with the rapidity of the yen’s movements rather than a specific level.

Moreover, Japan’s government appointed financial regulation expert Atsushi Mimura as its top currency diplomat, replacing Masato Kanda. Kanda had been dealing with significant yen declines this year, which led to the largest currency intervention on record. 

Meanwhile, Chinese markets reversed early losses to trade higher, with the Shanghai Composite up by 0.7% at 2,967.12, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also gained 0.7% at 17,834.71.

Investors were initially concerned about the potential comments from Biden and Trump regarding trade relations with China, which have deteriorated in recent years. However, both offered little indication of whether additional tariffs were forthcoming. 

In Australia, S&P/ASX200 fell 0.38% to $0.6623.

21 Shares Sumits Form 8A For Spot Ethereum ETF Following VanEck’s Filing Two Days Ago

21 Shares has filed 8-A for its Spot Ethereum ETF to the SED, following VanEck’s filing earlier this week. Other Ether ETH issuers, such as BlackRock, Fidelity, and Franklin Templeton, are also expected to do the same. 

 

 

The 8-A form is critical as its approval enables the issuer to list and trade the product on an exchange. Therefore, with its filing on Thursday, June 27, 21Shares has strengthened its position alongside other applicants for the Spot Ethereum ETF. 

Earlier this month, ARK Invest announced that it would not proceed with its spot Ethereum ETF application for now. Despite this decision, ARK remains committed to exploring ways to provide investors with access to Ethereum’s underlying technology. 

Furthermore, ARK continues to leverage its strength in active management across various investment products, including disruptive innovation equity ETFs, digital asset futures ETFs, and the ARK Venture Fund. Concurrently, other applicants for the spot Ethereum ETF have been updating their S-1 filings. 

Following ARK Invest’s withdrawal and termination of its partnership with 21Shares, the latter opted to independently advance its application for the spot Ethereum ETF. 

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, investment manager VanEck submitted Form 8-A for its spot Ethereum ETF to the SEC moving the ETF closer to being traded live. 

The revised filing led senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas to suggest that spot Ethereum ETFs could potentially be available for trading as early as July 2. Balchunas supported his prediction by noting that VanEck had previously filed Form 8-A for its Bitcoin ETF, which launched seven days after filing. 

The final decision now rests with the SEC. According to ETFstore Nate Geraci, approval is anticipated within the next two to three weeks, signaling that the regulatory process is approaching its conclusion.