Asian stocks rose ahead of US inflation data

Asia Pasific stocks started with increases on Thursday morning. Investors await a release of US inflation data later in the day.

Tech companies boosted Seoul by 0.26%

The Seoul Stock Exchange closed with a rise today. Kospi, its main indicator, increased by 0.26% thanks to big tech advances, supported by purchases by foreign investors. 

The selective South Korean Kospi gained 8.46 points on Thursday to stand at 3,224.64 units. Meanwhile, the Kosdaq technological index declined by 0.92%, or 8.98 points, to 987.77 units.

The Kospi returned to positive territory today after two consecutive setbacks thanks to the appetite of foreign operators. They netted about 710 billion won (about $636 million) today. 

The day started cautiously, waiting for the US to publish the CPI for May today and obtain more clues about the pace of recovery. 

However, the technology sector gained momentum and dragged much of the market. It happened after the local regulator preliminarily approved the entry of the owner of the leading South Korean instant messaging service, Kakao, into the insurance sector.

Even so, Kospi’s highest-cap stock, tech Samsung Electronics, ended the day with a fall of 0.12%. However, SK Hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip maker, increased by 0.41%.

Naver, the largest South Korean internet portal operator, increased its value by 4.18%, and Kakao climbed by 3.49%.

In the biopharmaceutical sector, Samsung Biologics advanced by 2.52%, and its competitor, Celltrion, grew by 1.53%.

Hyundai Motor, the largest national car manufacturer, slipped by 1.46%.

Nikkei gained due to Government’s plan to hasten vaccination

The Nikkei, the main index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, rose by 0.34% this Thursday. The advance was supported by the announcement of the Japanese Prime Minister, Yoshihide Suga. He announced that the vaccination of the entire population would be completed until November. 

The Tokyo stock market advanced by 97.76 points, to 28,958.56. The investors were encouraged by the economic recovery and the efforts of the Japanese Government to accelerate the rate of vaccination. The portion of the country’s population who has been fully vaccinated is less than 4%. 

Topix, including the companies with the highest capitalization, dropped by 0.02% or 0.41 points to stand at 1,956.73 units in a mixed session.

Among the most traded values ​​of the day, the electronic components manufacturer Lasertec gained 3.26%.

On the other hand, Tokyo Electron, the chip manufacturer, increased by 1.6% in a day, marked by advances in technology. 

Fast Retailing, Uniqlo’s subsidiary, also gained 0.54%.

As for decreases, the shares of the pharmaceutical company Esai yielded 7.02%. Also, Toyota, one of the largest vehicle manufacturers, ended with a fall of 0.40%. It was followed by Nintendo, the developer, and distributor of video games. The company’s shares dropped by 0.54%.

The shipping sector led the most significant gains and the paper mill, while the mining sector acquired the losses.

In the first section, 980 companies increased compared to 1,076 companies with losses. Meanwhile, 130 closed unchanged.

The trading volume amounted to 2.4 trillion yen. 

Indian stock market opened in green

Like the Asian markets, the Indian market had a strong opening. Sensex started with a gain of 150 points. Nifty opened at 15,692 with a jump of about 50 points and went up to a high of 15,741 during trading. The all-time high of Nifty is 15,800 points – a level reached on Wednesday. During the trading today, the Sensex went up to 52,300.

SEC is considering changes in the stock market operation

Gary Gensler, the president of the US SEC, stated that the entity is studying changes in the operation of the stock market to adapt it to technological evolution. 

Gensler, who took office in April, has previously questioned the system by which securities are exchanged. He noted that part of the trading volume does not go through traditional exchanges but through wholesale brokerage firms.

In this regard, the president of the SEC said that the authorities are reviewing the price incentives that exchanges and those brokerages use to attract money orders or requests. He stated that regulatory changes are being considered in the way in which those prices are set.

Gensler suggested that retail investors could get better prices by trading on exchanges, stating that nearly half were at wholesale brokerages and dark pools.

Changes to Rule 10b5-1 trading plans are likely

Exchanges disclose their bids and offers, then compile those spins and publish the best data for each share. Meanwhile, wholesale brokerages and dark pools do not disclose their pre-exchange prices.

Gensler cautioned that the national best bid and offer, the NBBO model, could be a poor benchmark because many trades take place off-exchanges. 

This Monday, Gensler also announced changes in the plans to sell shares of people who belong to a company. These are usually used to avoid allegations of insider trading or inside information. 

The rule, called 10b5-1, was created by the SEC in 2000. They made cracks in the regime for the control of privileged information. In February 2021, Senator Elizabeth Warren and others wrote to the SEC about addressing abusive practices surrounding 10b5-1 plans.

The regulator seeks to identify and punish the abuses that occur.

With the ongoing investigation of Rule 10b5-1 trading plans, public companies and insiders should be informed of these reforms when adopting new strategies.

These two American stocks will benefit from the 5G revolution

The infrastructure that 5G requires will bring great changes and advantages: higher connection speeds, clearer signals, and better data transport capacity. With all this, investing in companies related to this new technology is a great option, according to Michael Marcus, a commodities trader on Nasdaq.

This change will require upgrading infrastructures and components, from new silicon semiconductor chips to signal testing equipment and smartphones. For this reason, Qorvo and Aviat Networks are presented as excellent options.

Qorvo is a large-cap semiconductor chip company based in Greensboro, North Carolina. It posted total revenue of $3.24 billion in 2020, making it a mid-size competitor in the chip industry. 

As for Aviat, it is a provider of microwave network solutions. The company’s products include hardware such as microwave routers and switches, link units, and indoor and outdoor radios, as well as software network management, stabilization, and automation.