Japan industrial production fell at the fastest rate since early 2011

Asian Market Update: Japan METI cuts assessment on industrial production after sharp decline

Economic Data

- (JP) JAPAN JUN PRELIMINARY INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: -3.3% V -1.2%E; Y/Y: 3.2% V 5.2%E; Japan govt Downgrades assessment of industrial output

- (KR) SOUTH KOREA JUN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION M/M: 2.9% (39-month high) V 1.2%E; Y/Y: 0.6% V 1.0%E

- (KR) SOUTH KOREA AUG MANUFACTURING BUSINESS SURVEY: 75 V 78 PRIOR; BUSINESS SURVEY NON-MANUFACTURING: 66 V 69 PRIOR

- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND JUN BUILDING PERMITS M/M: +3.5%) V -4.4% PRIOR (3-month high)

Index Snapshot (as of 02:30 GMT)

- Nikkei225 +0.3%, S&P/ASX +0.7%, Kospi +0.9%, Shanghai Composite -0.1%, Hang Seng +0.6%, Sept S&P500 +0.1% at 1,965

Commodities/Fixed Income/Currencies

- Aug gold flat at $1,299, Aug crude oil -0.1% at $100.92/brl, Sept Copper flat at $3.22/lb

- (JP) BOJ offers to buy ¥300B in 1-3yr JGB, ¥200B in 3-5yr JGB, ¥100B in 10-25yr JGB and ¥30B in JGB with maturity over 25-yr

- (AU) Australia MoF (AOFM) sells A$700M in 2.75% bonds due 2024; Avg yield: 3.4238%; Bid-to-cover: 3.01x

- (US) API PETROLEUM INVENTORIES: CRUDE: -4.4M (5th consecutive draw) v -2Me, GASOLINE: +0.06M v +1Me, DISTILLATE: +0.55M v +1Me

- USD/CNY: (CN) PBoC sets yuan mid point at 6.1645 v 6.1615 prior setting (weakest Yuan setting since Jul 7th)

Market Focal Points/Key Themes

- Twitter soared nearly 30% after a sound beat on Q2 results, impressive Q3 guidance, and raised target for FY14. Monthly active users growth accelerated to 6.3% from 5.8% q/q in Q1, though sceptics point to the seasonal spike due to the World Cup. US Steel, Amgen, and Newmont are among other notable gainers on earnings. Regeneron was also up over 3% after announcing EYLEA injection receives FDA approval for treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema in the aftermarket session. Buffalo Wilds Wings led the decliners despite beating on top and bottom lines, as FY outlook of 25-30% net income growth was shy of the lofty consensus in mid-30%s.

- Japan industrial production fell at the fastest rate since early 2011, rounding out an already terrible set of economic data for June. METI downgraded its assessment of industrial output to state "growth has weakened", with shipments segment falling 1.9% - now down for 5 consecutive months. Honda Motors was up over 3% after decent Q1 earnings and a modest lift in guidance reported overnight. Mitsubishi Motors, Nintendo, KDDI, and ANA highlight today's reports after market close.

- South Korea's Hyundai Heavy is down over 10% after soft Q1, also reflecting deteriorating sentiment in the shipping sector highlighted by a bearish report on Japanese shippers in the Nikkei. Hyundai Motors is up over 2% despite the chatter of Korean automakers threatened with union strikes due to wage disputes. Separately, Korean press also speculated the financial services commission may lower the 15% circuit breaker on individual stocks.

- Shanghai Composite is down by a modest 0.1% in the afternoon session after rising for 6 consecutive trading days. Overnight, Politburo reiterated China would maintain stable macro policies in H2, and that H1 was widely viewed to be in "reasonable range". Pres Xi did note some downward risks are present, but China should continue to stress "growth quality". Moody's said the impact of "marked downturn in the property sector" is still manageable, while a local press indicated the govt would consider planning for longer economic terms vs 5-year plans used by the Politburo for decades. Chinese currency softened once again after PBoC set the midpoint at a 3-week low.

Equities

US markets:

- TWTR: Reports Q2 +$0.02 v -$0.01e, R$312M v $280Me; +28.6% afterhours

- EW: Reports Q2 $0.88 v $0.77e, R$575.1M v $546Me; +7.2% afterhours

- X: Reports Q2 -$0.17 v -$0.33e, R$4.40B v $4.20Be; +6.7% afterhours

- REGN: EYLEA (aflibercept) injection receives FDA approval for treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema (DME); +3.7% afterhours

- AMGN: Reports Q2 $2.37 v $2.06e, R$5.18B v $4.87Be; +3.6% afterhours

- NCR: Reports Q2 $0.68 v $0.66e, R$1.66B v $1.67Be; +3.5% afterhours

- TRN: Reports Q2 $1.01 v $0.76e, R$1.50B v $1.37Be; +3.0% afterhours

- NEM: Reports Q2 $0.20 v $0.20e, R$1.77B v $1.84Be, raises FY14 gold production forecast; +1.8% afterhours

- ESRX: Reports Q2 $1.23 v $1.22e, R$25.1B v $24.4Be; +1.1% afterhours

- PNRA: Reports Q2 $1.82 v $1.75e, R$631M v $640Me; +0.9% afterhours

- APC: Reports Q2 $1.32 v $1.34e, R$4.44B v $4.13Be, raises FY14 sales, volume guidance; +0.6% afterhours

- MAR: Reports Q2 $0.71 v $0.67e, R$3.48B v $3.54Be; +0.5% afterhours

- AXP: Reports Q2 $1.43 v $1.38e, R$8.7B v $8.67Be; +0.2% afterhours

- AFL: Reports Q2 $1.66(operating) v $1.59e, R$5.84B v $5.84Be, sees lower FY14 sales; -4.0% afterhours

- BWLD: Reports Q2 $1.25 v $1.20e, R$366M v $361Me, weak outlook; -10.4% afterhours

Notable movers by sector:

- Consumer Discretionary: Japan Airlines Corp 9201.JP -3.0% (Q1 results); Noni B Ltd NBL.AU -4.3% (FY14 guidance)

- Financials: Nomura Holdings 8604.JP -1.8% (Q1 results); Shinsei Bank 8303.JP (Q1 results); Hong Yuan Securities 000562.CN +10.0%, Shenyin Wanguo Securities 218.HK +4.5% (continues to move higher on deal); Convoy Financial Services Holdings 1019.HK +7.4% (positive profit alert)

- Materials: LIXIL Group 5938.JP -2.5% (press speculation on Q1 results)

- Energy: Petro-China 601857.CN +3.8%, Sinopec 600028.CN +2.5% (former Security Chief Official Zhou Yongkang under probe); Termbray Petro-King Oilfield Services 2178.HK +9.5% (Q2 production results)

- Industrials: Honda Motor 7267.JP +3.3% (Q1 results); Hitachi Construction Machinery 6305.JP -4.1% (Lowers FY14/15 guidance); Quickstep Holdings QHL.AU +2.9% (quarterly update); Guangdong Yueyun Transportation 3399.HK +4.7% (H1 guidance); Misumi 9962.JP +4.1% (Q1 results)

- Utilities: Huaneng Power International 902.HK -4.0% (H1 results; Major China power plant)

- Technology: Omron 6645.JP +5.6% (Q1 results)