Stocks Decline With U.S. Futures as Bonds Drop

Equities fell across Asia and U.S. stock-index futures retreated as a selloff in government bonds deepened and investors took profits after one of the best starts to a year in recent history. The dollar edged higher after Monday’s decline and oil dropped for a second session.

Stocks in Japan, Hong Kong and Australia fell after the S&P 500 Index declined from a record high. Treasuries extended a retreat that’s taken yields to the highest since 2014, as traders gear up for a hectic week of economic data and the last Federal Reserve policy decision with Janet Yellen at the helm. German bund yields were little changed in early trading. Meanwhile, the yen climbed and sterling fell for a second day.

“An acceleration in the selloff of global bond markets appears to be starting to let some of the air out of the recent rally in global equity markets,” said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK. “U.S. markets suffered their worst one day fall this year, though sharp falls in tech stocks also contributed.” Apple Inc. shares tumbled as much as 2.6 percent amid renewed concerns about falling demand for the iPhone X.

A wariness is creeping into equity markets as surging rates on government bonds tests valuations for stocks. Still, strength in corporate earnings, a pick-up in economic growth and optimism over U.S. tax cuts has helped drive up prices in many markets across the world to the highest on record this month. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. predicts a correction in global stocks is on the horizon, but says any such pullback would be a buying opportunity.

Elsewhere, metals pared Monday’s gains and Bitcoin fell below $11,000.

Here are some important things to watch out for this week:

Fed policy makers gather for Chair Janet Yellen’s final meeting on interest rates Wednesday before her term ends.

President Trump delivers his first State of the Union address.

Tech giants Microsoft Corp., Facebook Inc., SAP SE, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. will announce earnings. Large-caps McDonald’s Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp., Merck & Co. Inc., Roche Holding AG, Daimler AG, Deutsche Bank AG and Boeing Co. also report.

U.S. employers probably added more jobs in January than a month earlier, economists forecast before the Friday report.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney will speak before the U.K. Parliament’s Economic Affairs Committee in London Tuesday.

Gauges of Chinese manufacturing and services industries are due Wednesday.

On Tuesday, data may show the euro-area economy with a solid expansion at a 0.6 percent quarterly rate.

On Wednesday, the core euro-zone inflation report may show an uptick from a year ago to 1 percent this month.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.6 percent in early European trading. Futures on the S&P 500 Index dropped 0.5 percent after its 0.7 percent slide Monday, when the VIX index soared 25 percent.

Japan’s Topix index was down 1.2 percent at the close, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 1.4 percent.

South Korea’s Kospi index fell 1.2 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index retreated 0.9 percent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.2 percent. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland shares traded in Hong Kong fell 2 percent. The gauge has rallied 15 percent this year.

The MSCI All-Country World Index declined 0.2 percent after falling 0.6 percent Monday, the most since August.

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was up 0.2 percent after jumping 0.3 percent Monday.

The euro held onto Monday’s declines at $1.2355.

The pound was at $1.4018.

The yen traded at 108.72 per dollar.

Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries was up two basis points at 2.71 percent, the highest since April 2014.

German 10-year bund yields were little changed at 0.69 percent.

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1 percent to $64.91 a barrel.

Gold fell 0.3 percent to $1,335.95 an ounce.

Source: Bloomberg