Nikkei index exceeds 34 thousand points for the first time since March 1990; Other Asian markets are slipping

Bitcoin prices fell to about $46,000 after the US Securities and Exchange Commission clarified on Tuesday that it had not yet approved trading of cryptocurrency ETFs.

The price of Bitcoin rose to nearly $47,000 after the SEC’s Account

However, an SEC spokesperson told CNBC that her X account had been hacked, and the post regarding the bitcoin ETFs was not published by the SEC or its employees.

After the SEC clarification, the price of Bitcoin fell to around $45,400, before recovering slightly.

The Australian CPI rose 4.3% year-on-year in November, the smallest increase since January 2022 and less than the 4.9% recorded in October.

The figure was also slightly below the 4.4% that economists in a Reuters poll had expected.

The country’s statistics office said the top contributors in November were housing, insurance and financial services, as well as alcohol and tobacco.

The inflation rate is one of the main considerations for a country’s central bank when it decides monetary policy.

– Lim Hui Ji

AI-related stocks have been getting a lot of love from analysts lately — including analysts at Bank of America.

In a note dated January 2, the investment bank highlighted opportunities among what it calls “key AI vendors,” naming the top stocks with significant upside potential right now.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

– Amala Balakrishner

South Korea’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to a 23-month high of 3.3% in December, compared to 2.8% in November.

Data from the country’s statistics office revealed that the number of unemployed people rose by 78,000 to 944,000, or 9% year-on-year.

The employment-to-population ratio reached 61.7% in December, up 0.4 percentage points year-on-year.

– Lim Hui Ji

2023 has been a banner year for stocks, buoyed by the AI ​​boom and hopes for an end to rising interest rates.

After such a strong showing, investors may be wondering if it’s time to take profits.

There are still a number of uncertainties. The US Federal Reserve may have signaled an interest rate cut in 2024, but it also signaled an “unusually high degree of uncertainty” about the direction of policy.

CNBC Pro asked experts for their opinion on whether investors should cash out — and if so, how and when.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

-Weezin Tan

Shares of Juniper Networks jumped more than 23% in premarket trading Tuesday, and continued to rise after the Wall Street Journal reported Monday evening that cloud services provider Hewlett Packard Enterprise is in “advanced talks” to acquire the company for about $13 billion.

The newspaper reported that a deal between the two companies could be announced this week. The acquisition could bolster HPE’s efforts to challenge Cisco, which has long competed with Juniper in the networking equipment market.

Juniper’s stock price underperformed the technology sector last year, losing about 8%. On the other hand, HPE added nearly 10%.

— Pia Singh, Jordan Novitt

Oil prices rose on Tuesday after yesterday’s selling.

West Texas Intermediate crude futures for February rose $1.47, or 2.08%, to settle at $72.24 per barrel. Brent crude futures for March rose $1.39, or 1.76%, to trade at $77.46 per barrel.

The two benchmarks closed down more than three percent on Monday after Saudi Arabia reduced crude prices for its Asian customers by $2 per barrel, raising concerns about global demand.

“Volatility is high, and if you don’t like the price, just hold on,” Phil Flynn of Price Futures Group wrote in a note Tuesday morning.

Flynn said prices rebounded on Tuesday because yesterday’s selling was “unbalanced.”

Geopolitical risks also persist as tensions in the Middle East rise and Libya’s largest oil field remains closed.

The US trade deficit fell by a larger-than-expected margin in November as goods deficits with both Europe and China declined.

In a report Tuesday, the Commerce Department said the deficit in goods and services fell to $63.2 billion, a decrease of $1.3 billion, or 2%, from October. This move reflects a decrease in the shortfall in both imports and exports during the month. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had expected a deficit of $64.7 billion.

The merchandise deficit with the European Union decreased to $15.6 billion and to $21.5 billion with China.

—Jeff Cox