Japan’s GDP, Singapore’s GDP, South Korea’s trade

On Wednesday, total investment in Bitcoin exceeded $1 trillion, reaching its highest level in more than two years since the debut of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States last month.

The price of Ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, soars above $2,700, the highest since May 2022, as investors hope the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will green light Spot Ether ETF in May of this year. I expect it to come out.

“We’re bringing together positive regulatory action globally, and we’re making sure that it’s doing well,” Paul Brody, Ernst & Young’s global blockchain leader, said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Thursday. “This is unblocking a huge amount of institutional capital.”

“There’s $200 trillion of institutional capital that hasn’t had access to these assets before, and while this influx won’t happen overnight, we will see a steady allocation of resources there,” he added. Ta.

— Dylan Butts

Indonesian stocks rose after Indonesia’s Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto declared victory in the presidential election after unofficial vote counts showed he had a significant lead over his rival.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index rose as much as 2%, hitting its highest since January 8. The index is currently trading 1.55% higher, led by gains in the financials and basic materials sectors. The Indonesian rupiah rose 0.13%.

However, there are still some who are cautious about the rise.

In its daily note, Mizuho cited the importance of Indonesia’s Ministry of Finance establishing fiscal credibility, saying, “We expect an unbridled and sustained euphoria with sustained appreciation of Indonesian assets and the rupiah. “This is premature, if not presumptuous.”

—Li Yingshan

Rakuten Group stock rose more than 15% on Thursday after the Japanese technology conglomerate narrowed its 2023 loss from a year earlier.

Rakuten’s financial results released late Wednesday showed an operating loss of 212.86 billion yen in 2023, compared to an operating loss of 371.61 billion yen in 2022.

The company’s attributable loss also decreased to 339.47 billion yen, compared to 377.21 billion yen in 2022.

The profits and sales of the FinTech and Internet Services business unit increased in 2023, while the mobile division’s losses decreased by nearly 30% in 2023.

— Lim Hui Jie, Shreyasi Sanyal

Japanese semiconductor company Renesas Electronics said Thursday it will acquire Sydney-listed software company Altium in an all-cash deal valued at A$9.1 billion ($5.89 billion).

Renesas shares fell 1.2% in early trading in Tokyo, while Altium rose 28% in Sydney.

Renesas said it would pay A$68.50 per share, a 33.6% premium to Altium’s Wednesday closing price of A$51.26.

Renesas will finance the acquisition with bank loans and cash on hand, but since Altium’s main business is making tools to design chip circuit boards, the acquisition will help the chipmaker streamline the electronic design process for its customers. He said he could.

The Japanese company said the deal had been unanimously approved by both companies’ boards of directors and is currently awaiting approval from Altium shareholders, Australian courts and regulators.

— Shreyashi Sanyal

Australian employment rose by just 500 jobs in January, far below the 30,000 increase expected by Reuters.

The country’s unemployment rate rose to 4.1% from 3.9% in December, higher than the 4% expected in a Reuters poll.

Separately, Australia’s labor force participation rate remained flat at 66.8%.

— Lim Huijie

Japan’s economy unexpectedly contracted in the final quarter of 2023, according to government data.

Provisional gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.4% from a year earlier in the fourth quarter, after falling by a revised 3.3% in the July-September period.

This was also significantly lower than the 1.4% growth forecast in a Reuters poll.

Japan also decreased by 0.1% quarter-over-quarter in the third quarter, after contracting by a revised 0.8% from the second quarter.

Read the full article for more information.

— Shreyasi Sanyal, Clement Tan

Over the past year, the performance of major Asian markets has been mixed.

Investors are shunning Chinese stocks and flooding into Indian and Japanese markets.

Those interested in stock picking rather than passive investing can turn to a list of bank “alpha” stocks that have the potential to beat the market.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Tan Weizhen

Singapore’s economy grew 2.2% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to official data on Thursday, lower than the 2.8% growth expected and the 2.5% expansion expected by Reuters.

Overall, Singapore’s economy grew by 1.1% in 2023, slower than the 3.8% growth in 2022. Growth in 2023 was primarily driven by the information and communications, transportation and storage sectors.

—Li Yingshan

European semiconductor equipment stocks are likely to outperform as spending on artificial intelligence chips increases over the next decade, according to Bank of America.

The continent’s chip stocks produce the high-tech machinery needed to manufacture the latest generation of chips.

“we, [price targets] “We expect EU Semicaps coverage to continue to benefit from investments in AI infrastructure,” BofA analysts said in a client note.

The Wall Street bank said top stocks are likely to rise even higher thanks to the “undervalued value of AI stocks in Europe.”

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about stock picks here.

— Ganesh Rao

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Michael Barr on Wednesday backed the central bank’s cautious approach to lowering interest rates this year.

In prepared remarks to the National Association for Business Economics, Governor William Barr expressed confidence that inflation is returning to the Fed’s 2% target, but added, “Before we begin the process of lowering the federal funds rate, “We need to continue to see good data.”

This week’s consumer price index data, which showed higher-than-expected inflation in January, was a “reminder that the path back to 2% inflation may be rocky.”

Along with his comments on monetary policy, Barr described the state of the banking system as “sound and resilient,” but said “there are some risks,” most notably commercial real estate.

—Jeff Cox

Oil futures fell on Wednesday, giving up early gains as U.S. inventories surged while demand fell.

West Texas Intermediate March contract fell $1.23, or 1.58%, to settle at $76.64 per barrel. The April Brent contract fell $1.17, or 1.41%, to settle at $81.60 per barrel.

The move comes as U.S. commercial crude oil inventories rose by 12 million barrels last week, according to the Energy Information Administration. Oil demand, as measured by finished product supplied to the market, fell by 973,000 barrels per day over the same period.

Oil prices had risen 1% in early trading after Israel launched airstrikes in Lebanon after a rocket fired into northern Israel, killing one person and wounding at least seven others.

— Spencer Kimball

Apple was the biggest laggard in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The iPhone maker was down 1.3% in early afternoon trading. This restrained the rise in the 30-stock index, but there was little change in the end.