South Korea GDP, Caixin Manufacturing PMI, Japan Consumer Confidence

Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong says the state’s sovereign wealth fund investment loss of $275 million in collapsed crypto exchange FTX was “disappointing and caused reputational damage” to the city-state.

But the loss of investment doesn’t mean the governance system isn’t working, Wong said, adding that an internal review was underway.

“It’s more the nature of investing and risk taking,” he said.

The loss of FTX will not impact the net investment returns of Singapore Reserves, which are “linked to the expected long-term aggregate returns of our investment entities and not to individual investments”, it said. he declares.

Going forward, Singapore plans to require crypto service providers to implement basic investor protection measures, but “no amount of regulation can remove this risk,” he warned.

–Sheila Chiang

China Caixin/Markit index of manufacturing purchasing managers for November came in at 49.4, above expectations of 48.9 in a Reuters survey of economists.

The reading marks a fourth consecutive month of contraction, following a reading of 49.2 from October and falling to 48.1 in September – below the 50 point mark that separates growth from contraction.

Separately, the official PMI print China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported on Wednesday it was 48, showing a second consecutive month of shrinking factory activity.

– Jihye Lee

The White House is consider building up additional oil reserves against the backdrop of the upcoming winter and the uncertainty surrounding the market, sources familiar with the matter told CNBC.

The Biden administration is considering whether to call on Congress to increase the storage limit, potentially doubling it, to build additional reserves that the administration could release if supply tightens or prices rise again , the people said.

The United States currently holds about 1 million barrels of fuel oil in New York and Connecticut.

The White House is bracing for a potential price spike as the European oil embargo and G-7 price cap on Russian oil looms, potentially disrupting supply.

Oil prices were little changed in the early hours of Asia. The West Texas Intermediate Futures fell slightly to $80.53 a barrel, while the Brent futures lost 0.06% to settle at $86.92 a barrel.

—Kayla Tausche, Lee Ying Shan

Investor confidence in the tech sector has been shaken this year amid a flight to safety, but high-profile investor Paul Meeks said he was now “more optimistic” about the sector than those months, although he remains selective within the sector.

He tells CNBC his favorite stocks.

Pro subscribers can find out more here.

— Zavier Ong

South Korea revised gross domestic product for the third quarter confirmed growth of 3.1% compared to the same period a year ago, higher than a 2.9% expansion observed in the second quarter.

The economy recorded slower quarterly growth of 0.3% in the third quarter, after growing 0.7% in the previous period.

Separately, South Korea reports a trade deficit of $7.01 billion for November, beating expectations of $4.42 billion – marking the third consecutive month of growing trade deficit due to weak exports.

Exports fell 14%, below expectations of an 11% drop, while imports rose more than expected by 2.7%, according to preliminary data from the customs agency.

– Jihye Lee

Chinese stocks rose this week after the country’s health authorities reported a recent increase in vaccination rates, which experts say is crucial for the country’s reopening.

The impact of Beijing’s change of course to deal with the Covid-19 epidemic is being felt not only in China but also around the world.

The Swiss bank UBS has identified 15 stocks in the MSCI European Index who will outperform “in an environment where Chinese growth is rebounding and the country is reopening its borders”.

CNBC Pro subscribers can learn more here.

—Ganesh Rao

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said he continues to believe in the path to a “soft” landing – even as the path has narrowed over the past year.

“I would like to continue to believe that there is a path to a soft or soft landing,” Powell told the Brookings Institution.

“Our job is to try to achieve that, and I think it’s still doable,” Powell said. “If you look at history it’s not a likely outcome, but I would just say it’s a different set of circumstances.”

—Sarah Min

Comments from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell that the central bank will slow future interest rate hikes as early as December will put upward pressure on all three major indices.

The S&P500 jumped 0.6% from red on the news.

The Dow was almost stable after falling for most of the day.

The Nasdaq Compound gained momentum to 1.3% up.

—Alex Harring

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told the Brookings Institution on Wednesday that the central bank could afford to ease its tighter monetary policy at its December meeting (which was due to end Dec. 14).

The lagged effect of the rate hike already taken in 2022, along with the reduction in the size of the Fed’s balance sheet through quantitative tightening, means “it makes sense to moderate the pace of our rate hikes as we are approaching the level of restraint that will be sufficient to bring inflation down,” Powell said.

“The time to moderate the pace of rate hikes could come as early as the December meeting,” the 69-year-old Fed chairman said.

In response to Powell’s remarks, the S&P 500 quickly gained around 3970 from around 3950 prior to the address.

—Scott Schnipper, Jeff Cox