GLOBAL MARKETS-Surging bond yields push Asian shares to one-month lows

(Adds Chinese shares, updates levels throughout)
By Koh Gui Qing and Swati Pandey
NEW YORK/SYDNEY, March 5 (Reuters) - Asian stocks skidded to
one-month lows on Friday as rising U.S. Treasury yields again
rattled equity investors while hoisting the dollar to a
three-month high, which in turn dragged the Japanese yen.
Energy markets were not spared the volatility either, with
oil prices adding to big gains overnight after the Organization
of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies agreed to
mostly maintain their supply cuts in April as they await a more
solid recovery in demand from the coronavirus pandemic. O/R
Australian stocks .AXJO shed more than 1%, Japan's Nikkei
share average .N225 dropped 1.6% and shares in Seoul .KS11
fell 1.4%. Chinese shares were in the red with the bluechip
CSI300 index .CSI300 off 1.5%.
That sent MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares
outside of Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS to 684.52, the lowest since
Feb. 1.
E-Mini S&P futures ESc1 were 0.5% lower.
U.S. stocks dropped on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chair
Jerome Powell disappointed some investors by not indicating that
the Fed might step up purchases of long-term bonds to hold down
longer-term interest rates. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite .IXIC tumbled 2.1%, taking
it down about 10% from its record close on Feb. 12 and putting
it in correction territory. .N
Even though Powell made it clear that the Fed was not close
to changing its ultra-loose monetary policy stance anytime soon,
some analysts still worried rising Treasury yields could herald
higher borrowing costs, thereby limiting the fragile U.S.
economic recovery.
"The market was seemingly looking for Powell to push back
harder on the recent increase in yields," said Ray Attrill, head
of forex strategy at National Australia Bank.
"Volatility seen in local interest rate markets yesterday
with another large increase in long-term rates and government
bond yields has set the scene for a choppy market again today if
overnight developments are any guide."
Bond investors with a bearish view of Treasuries took heart
in Powell's remarks and sold the notes. The yield on 10-year
Treasuries US10YT=RJR climbed above 1.5% to as high as
1.5727%, but still below a one-year high of 1.614% struck last
week. US/
The yield curve, a measure of economic expectations,
steepened on rising yields, with the gap between two- and
10-year yields widening by another 6.3 basis points overnight.
Rising Treasury yields bolstered demand for the dollar. The
dollar index =USD jumped to a three month high of 91.734.
USD/
A stronger dollar hobbled the yen. By early Friday, the yen
JPY= fell to as low as 107.97, the lowest since July 1 though
it pared those losses and was last at 107.85.
The euro EUR=EBS was also tripped by a firmer dollar, with
the common currency sluggish at $1.1960.
Climbing yields and dollar strength pummeled gold prices,
which sank to a nine-month low as investors sold the precious
metal to reduce the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding
asset. GOL/
Spot gold XAU= slid another 0.2% early Friday to $1,692.26
per ounce, trading below $1,700 for the first time since June
2020.
Oil prices extended gains on early Friday after zooming
higher overnight.
U.S. crude futures CLc1 climbed 17 cents, or 0.3%, to $64,
holding below a 13-month high hit on Thursday. Brent crude
LCOc1 rose 10 cents to $66.84 a barrel.
In the cryptocurrency market, bitcoin BTC=BTSP was down 4%
at $46,422 Friday.

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