Asia Market Quick Take – 11 June, 2026

Key points:

• Macro: US strikes Iran for 2^nd day. US CPI and Core CPI matches expectations.
• Equities: Chipmakers led losses; Nasdaq 100 lost 2%, SMCI plunged 28%
• FX: Dollar holds firm; high CPI and Iran strikes dampen Fed-cut hopes
• Commodities: Brent crude surged; gold fell for a third straight session
• Fixed income: UST yields bear‑steepened; 10‑year up to 4.546%

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Disclaimer: Past performance does not indicate future performance.

Macro:

• The US launched a second day of strikes on Iran, raising fears that peace efforts could collapse and the conflict could drag on. Trump accused Tehran of stalling on an interim deal, while Iran vowed to stand firm. Earlier, the US carried out “self-defense strikes” after an American helicopter was downed, and Iran hit US facilities in Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait in response.
• US annual inflation rose to 4.2% in May 2026, the highest since April 2023 and third straight increase, driven by a 23.5% jump in energy costs amid the Iran conflict. Gasoline rose 40.5% and fuel oil 58.9%. Monthly CPI was up 0.5%, with energy over 60% of the gain. Core inflation reached 2.9% year-on-year, while monthly core CPI slowed to 0.2%.
• The Bank of Canada kept its key overnight rate at 2.25% for a fifth straight meeting in June 2026, as expected, and left the Bank Rate and deposit rate at 2.5% and 2.20%. It sees limited spillover from higher energy prices, expects inflation near 3% before easing toward 2%, and notes weak economic activity and ongoing US trade policy uncertainty.

Equities: 

• US — Wall Street fell sharply on Wednesday as escalating US-Iran tensions and a continued rotation out of tech weighed on sentiment. The S&P 500 dropped 1.6% to 7,267, its lowest close since May 5, while the Nasdaq 100 fell 2.0% — its first back-to-back 1%+ decline since March. The Dow shed 953 points (-1.9%). Chipmakers led losses: Qualcomm -6.1%, AMD -5.1%, Nvidia -3.7%, and Super Micro Computer plunged 28.0% on plans to raise $7b through equity financing. Cracker Barrel surged as much as 35% intraday after boosting its revenue guidance. Amazon's trucking expansion sent Old Dominion -5.1%, FedEx Freight -7%, and Saia -3.3%. In after-hours trade, Oracle fell ~7% after reporting higher-than-expected capex of $16.5bn for the quarter, overshadowing a modest beat on cloud infrastructure revenue.
• EU — European equities were broadly muted on Wednesday, with the Stoxx 600 little changed as softer US core CPI offset Middle East concerns. The DAX fell 1.0% to 24,195, its lowest since May 15, with Siemens Energy the largest decliner at -6.5%. The Euro Stoxx 50 closed -0.66% at 6,010. The FTSE 100 bucked the trend, rising 0.3% to 10,255, led by Shell (+1.8%) on higher oil prices. The SMI gained 0.8%, with Nestle up 2.6%. HSBC and Standard Chartered extended declines in London, down ~8% and ~12% respectively since last Thursday on concerns over new China regulatory curbs. Soitec fell ~11% after a Jefferies downgrade.
• Asia — Asian equities fell on Wednesday as tech selling resumed and Middle East tensions escalated. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped ~2.7%. The Kospi tumbled 4.5% to 7,731, reversing part of Tuesday's 8.2% rebound, with SK Hynix falling 7.5%. The Nikkei 225 declined 0.7%, unable to recover from a lower open. The Hang Seng fell, with HSBC and Standard Chartered down 4.8% in Hong Kong. The STI dropped 1.3% to 4,959, its lowest since May 12, with Thai Beverage the largest decliner at -3.4%. This morning (Thursday), Asian markets are extending losses as US forces launched fresh overnight strikes on Iran. Brent crude surged above $95, and MSCI Asia Pacific is down ~1%, on track for a fifth loss in six sessions. The yen is hovering near 160.52 per dollar, close to its weakest since April.

Earnings this week:

• Thursday: Chow Tai Fook, Adobe, Halma, Lennar, LPP, Do & Co
• Friday: SpaceX IPO