Market Wrap MENA-Asia 10 August: Nikkei Jumps 2.1 Percent as Oil Reclaims 84 Dollars

By The Edge Research Team

Asian markets opened the week sharply higher on Monday as the relief that lifted Wall Street after the US jobs shock extended across the region, while regional markets split and oil reclaimed the mid-80s on Brent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 2.08 percent and South Korea’s small-cap Kosdaq surged 6.97 percent, per CNBC, while in the region Saudi Arabia and Oman advanced, the UAE returned from its weekend lower, and Egypt paused below Sunday’s record after setting a fresh intraday high.

Across Asia the rebound was broad and emphatic. The Nikkei 225 jumped 2.08 percent to 66,970.22 and the broader Topix added 0.63 percent, per CNBC, while South Korea’s Kosdaq surged 6.97 percent to 854.47, a sharp snap-back in the small-cap index after last week’s technology turbulence, with the Kospi up 0.65 percent at 6,299.66. Taiwan’s Taiex rose 1.59 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng 1.05 percent and the Shanghai Composite 0.67 percent, while Shenzhen and India’s Nifty 50 were little changed and Australia’s ASX 200 eased 0.33 percent. Singapore’s market was closed for the National Day holiday.

In the Gulf, the tone was firm outside the UAE. Saudi Arabia’s TASI rose 0.26 percent to 10,845.58 and the MT30 0.32 percent to 1,459.24, per the exchange’s closing prints, while Muscat’s MSX 30 added 0.49 percent to 7,431.63 and Boursa Kuwait’s Premier Market edged up 0.10 percent to 9,316.81, with the All-Share up 0.04 percent at 8,877.25, per the exchanges. Bahrain’s All Share firmed 0.06 percent to 1,956.92 and Qatar’s QE Index was little changed at 10,097.44, per the exchange and our calculation. The UAE, back from its Saturday-Sunday weekend, went the other way: Dubai’s DFM General Index fell 0.73 percent to 5,901.08 and Abu Dhabi’s FADGI eased 0.10 percent to 10,084.52, per the exchanges.

Egypt paused after making history. The EGX30 slipped 0.45 percent to 54,876.00, per the exchange, though not before touching 55,159 early in the session, a fresh intraday high above Sunday’s record, with the pullback carrying the look of profit-taking after a run that still leaves the index up 31.19 percent this year. Jordan’s ASE index rebounded 0.59 percent to 3,987.03, per the exchange, recovering Sunday’s decline. The Egyptian pound traded at 49.90 per dollar, per CNBC.

In commodities and currencies, oil extended its recovery. Brent crude rose 1.72 percent to 84.99 dollars a barrel and West Texas Intermediate 1.83 percent to 79.61 dollars, per CNBC, leaving roughly two-thirds of the OPEC+ decision’s slide now recovered, our calculation, while gold held near Friday’s surge at 4,390.20 dollars an ounce, off 0.22 percent. The yen gave back part of Friday’s gain at 158.84 per dollar, Bitcoin eased 0.40 percent to about 64,886 dollars, the 10-year Treasury yield ticked up to 4.672 percent, and the Kuwaiti dinar held at its official reference of 0.3071 per dollar.

Why it matters: Monday extends the jobs shock relief across Asia and raises its volume, our reading. The Kosdaq’s near 7 percent surge is the clearest evidence yet that last week’s Korean technology panic, which we tracked through Thursday’s 4.58 percent Kospi drop, is reversing rather than spreading, and Tokyo’s 2 percent jump adds the heaviest single weight to the regional rally. Oil is the second signal, with Brent’s climb back through 84 dollars unwinding most of the damage from the OPEC+ decision within a week of it landing, a recovery that came without any comparably large new supply headline. The region’s split session fits the same picture: money rotated toward the markets most geared to global risk appetite, while Egypt’s pause after a record and the UAE’s soft return read as local rhythm, not changed direction.

Outlook: The rally now runs into the week’s hard data, our reading. Tuesday brings the EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook, the first official forecast update since the OPEC+ decision, and Wednesday’s July US consumer prices at 3:30 PM Kuwait time will test whether the rate relief powering this rebound survives its first inflation reading. The markers to watch are whether the Kosdaq holds a gain of this size, whether Brent consolidates above the mid-80s, and whether Egypt’s pullback stays shallow. Our wraps will track each session.

Table – MENA equities, 10 August close, ranked by change:

Table – Asia equities, 10 August close, ranked by change:

Table – Commodities, intraday 10 August, ranked by change:

Table – Currencies and crypto, intraday 10 August, ranked by percent change:

Sources: CNBC; the regional exchanges.

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