Markets Today: Nikkei Up 1.5%, Gold Slips on Profit Taking, Swiss MoM Deflation, DAX Holds Steady Above Support

[Ben Graham]

Asia Market Wrap - Nikkei Gains 1.5%

Most Read: GBP/USD Forecast: Cable Recovers but the Outlook Remains Murky. WIll NFP Data Serve as a Catalyst?

Stock markets in Asia struggled to move higher on Thursday because a big selloff of Chinese stocks got worse, making investors nervous. This overshadowed the optimism from the previous day, when weak U.S. job data had made people hopeful that the American central bank might lower interest rates.

In some good news, Japan successfully sold its 30-year government bonds, which was a big relief for investors. They had been worried that no one would want to buy Japanese debt because of a recent global trend of selling bonds, political problems in Japan, and concerns about the country's finances.

Japan's Nikkei bounced back on Thursday after falling to its lowest point in almost a month on Wednesday. The recovery was led by Japanese technology companies, whose stock prices rose after similar tech companies in the U.S. performed well overnight.By the end of the day, the Nikkei index was up 1.5%.

The biggest winner was the tech-investing company SoftBank Group, with its stock jumping 6.5%. Other top performers included the cable-maker Fujikura and the chip-equipment maker Advantest.

The broader market index called the Topix also finished the day 1% higher.

Swiss Headline Inflation Steady, MoM Inflation Drops Into Negative Territory

In August, prices in Switzerland were 0.2% higher than they were at the same time last year, an inflation rate that was the same as July's and matched what experts predicted. The main reason for the increase was a big jump in the cost of clothing and shoes, along with small price rises for housing, energy, education, and restaurant meals.

However, this was balanced out because prices continued to fall for things like food, transportation, household items, and health services. A key measure called "core inflation," which ignores the changing prices of food and energy, actually slowed down slightly. Interestingly, when just comparing August to the month before, prices overall actually dropped by a tiny 0.1%, which was an unexpected decrease.

For more on the performance of the Swiss Franc, read USD/CHF Technical: Potential Swiss franc bullish range breakout as NFP looms

European Open - European Stocks Unchanged

European stock markets were mostly unchanged as investors felt cautious due to ongoing worries in the bond market.

The travel and tourism sector was the hardest hit, with its value dropping significantly. This was mainly because the British airline Jet2 warned that its profits for the year would be lower than it had previously hoped. As a result, Jet2's stock price dropped by a quarter of its value, and other travel companies like TUI and Easyjet also saw their shares fall 4% each.

In other news, luxury carmaker Porsche's stock also slipped nearly 1% after the company was moved from Germany's main stock index to a secondary one, following recent losses caused by U.S. import taxes and weaker sales in China.

On the FX front, the euro held onto the gains it made overnight trading at 1.1652, while the U.S. dollar was stable when measured against other major world currencies. The DXY was last trading at 98.27.

In contrast, the British pound continued to struggle after a tough week, dropping slightly and staying near the four-week low it hit on Wednesday. The Japanese yen saw very little movement and was trading at 148.16 per dollar.

Elsewhere, the Australian dollar lost a small amount of value, and the New Zealand dollar was trading at about $0.5869.

Currency Power Balance

Source: OANDA Labs

Oil prices continued to fall, adding to the big drop they experienced the day before. This decline is happening as investors look ahead to a meeting this weekend of the major oil-producing countries, known as OPEC+.

At the meeting on Sunday, the group is expected to discuss increasing their oil production again for the month of October. Sources say the producers want to pump more oil to win back their share of the global market.

Currently, the price for Brent crude, the global standard, is around $67.17 a barrel, while the main U.S. oil price is about $63.53 a barrel.

Gold prices fell slightly as investors decided to sell and lock in their profits. This comes just one day after gold hit a new all-time record high price of $3,578.50 on Wednesday.

That record was driven by a growing belief that the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve, will soon cut interest rates. Now, investors are waiting for an important U.S. jobs report, which will be released on Friday, for more clues about the economy.

The current price for gold for immediate delivery is around $3,538.56 per ounce, while the price for gold to be delivered in December is about $3,596.20.

For more on the factors influencing the gold rally, read Gold (XAU/USD) Extends Weekly Gain to 3.5%. More Gains In Store for Gold? NFP Up Next

Economic Data Releases and Final Thoughts

Looking at the economic calendar, the European session will see attention shift to debt auctions in France and the United Kingdom, which have been at the center of Europe's bond selloff.

In the US session, markets will be focused on US ADP employment change data as well as S&P PMI data.

Also keep an eye out on news regarding the US-Japan trade deals as news filtered through a short-while ago that Japan and the US are in the final stages of talks to implement lower tariffs on Japanese auto imports. The reports also stated Japan and the US are to issue a joint statement on July trade accord, also MOU on rules for Japan's investment package

For all market-moving economic releases and events, see the MarketPulse Economic Calendar. (click to enlarge)

Chart of the Day - DAX Index

From a technical standpoint, the DAX Index has dropped below the 100-day MA but appears to have found support at the August 4 swing low at 23471.

Yesterday saw a mixed day for the DAX as the index fluctuated between gains and losses, finishing the day down marginally by 0.04%.

Immediate resistance is now provided by the 100-day MA with a break above leading to a potential retest of the 24000 handle.

There remains potential for further downside and a test of the lower band of the channel pattern which is in play. There is also support at the 23212 level which could come into a play in such a scenario.

DAX Daily Chart, September 4. 2025

Source: TradingView.com (click to enlarge)

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