Tom Westbrook

SINGAPORE, (Reuters) – Asian stocks saw modest gains Thursday. However, the positive mood that helped lift the Dow Jones and bitcoin records waned due to new worries about China’s property market after Evergrande sold its assets.

MSCI’s Asia-Pacific broadest index, which excludes Japan, edged 0.3% higher for a one-month peak. They were flat and fell 0.3%

The commodities and currencies were stable. Risk-sensitive units, such as those that are sensitive to risk, reached multi-month heights. Futures rose to $86.10/barrel, a three-year high.

China Evergrande, a heavily indebted developer that was at the heart of China’s credit crunch, announced Wednesday night it had abandoned a sale for $2.6 billion of its stake in a subsidiary. The company also said no other sales were in progress.

The shares of the company fell 10% on the Hong Kong Open. It will go into default if the 30 day grace period that expires this weekend is not used without paying a dollar bond coupon.

On Thursday, shares in rival developers gained support thanks to assurances from top Chinese officials about the fact that trouble in this sector wouldn’t escalate into a crisis. However global investors are still nervous.

Andrew Ticehurst (rates strategist, Nomura Sydney) said that “if you looked at your screens, you would believe that the world’s a pretty happy environment.”

The U.S. stock exchange has risen for six consecutive days, while bitcoin is at an all-time high and the U.S. bonds market remains calm. He said that it appears benign on the surface.

“But underneath the surface we’re uncomfortable about many things,” he said. He cited the slowdown of China’s economy, as well as concerns over the possible fallout from Evergrande.

It’s a ‘SEEMINGLY GOOD’ place.

Strong earnings overnight on Wall Street helped Dow Jones reach a record high during trade. The Dow Jones rose 0.4% and closed within one whisker of the record close. However, the Nasdaq saw a slight decline. [.N]

Volatility index (sometimes referred to by Wall Street as Wall Street’s fear gauge) fell to a 2-month low.

The benchmark hit a five month high of 1.673% Wednesday on the back of expectations for growth and inflation. In the Tokyo session, it was just above that level at 1.656%.

Investors know that rising energy costs and tightening employment markets will force policymakers to increase interest rates in the United States.

Fed Funds futures project a U.S. rate increase of 25 basis points in the third quarter 2022, while the eurodollar market expects higher rates by the end of the second quarter.

Recent sessions have seen sharp gains for the Australian and New Zealand dollar due to more aggressive movements in Antipodean rate markets.

Rodrigo Catril (OTC:) senior currency strategist, said that “All seems well” and added, “No one wants to spend the big dollars.” He sent this note to clients.

Last week, the Aussie gained 0.3% to $0.7541 at its 15-week peak. The Aussie then rose 0.1% on Thursday to $0.7210. [FRX/]

Both the euro and the Japanese yen were stable, with the dollar at 114.33 and the yen at $1.1662.

After the U.S. listed of an exchange-traded fund futures-based, a record number of shares hit on Wednesday, but it fell from $64,651 to its current peak. Meanwhile, fellow cryptocurrency ether holders saw their share of the market drop to $64,651.

Gold gained 0.5% overnight to $1,788 an troy ounce and rose 0.5% from $83.84 to $83.84 barrel [O/R][GOL/]