Yen Slide: The Bloomberg Open, Asia Edition

Good morning. The yen has its worst day in more than two years. G-7 leaders plan additional Iran sanctions. And Boomers in Australia can’t find affordable three-bedders.

The yen slid to as low as 146.51 against the dollar in its biggest drop since June 2022 after PM Shigeru Ishiba said the economy isn’t ready for another rate hike. His comment was followed by similarly cautious remarks from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda. The depreciation of the currency will continue to year-end, said a trader at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust.

G-7 leaders are poised to impose fresh sanctions against Iran following its attack on Israel, Joe Biden said after the group’s emergency meeting. He’s also seeking to deter strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. Eight troops were killed in clashes with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, the first Israeli casualties suffered in an expanding ground incursion.

Stocks eked out small gains and Treasuries declined following stronger-than-expected US jobs numbers. Goldman’s Scott Rubner is bullish for a year-end rally and worries that his 6,000 target for the S&P 500 may be “too low.” The dollar advanced. Markets are closed in mainland China and South Korea.

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Hong Kong brokers are swamped by a “once in a century” stock frenzy.

Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said there’s no reason for the Fed to keep cutting rates to stimulate the economy and warned it may backfire. The Fed’s Tom Barkin noted progress on inflation and diminished pricing power, but emphasized it may be too early for the central bank to declare victory.

In other news:

Oil prices look set to head nearer to $50 a barrel than $100 for the foreseeable future, despite all the Middle East geopolitical risk, writes Javier Blas. Only an all-out war can change that outlook.

Australian baby boomers looking to downsize from large family homes are increasingly pressed to find three-bedroom apartments. In Sydney, there’s almost triple the amount of two-bedroom apartments on the market as three-bedders, pushing the price of larger properties to three times the rate of the smaller ones— the biggest premium on record.

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