In Asian Equity Markets stocks were mixed on Monday, with Japan’s benchmark index trading below the flat line as the yen firmed. Investors also turned their attention to the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting later in the week. Japan’s Nikkei 225 recorded steeper losses as morning trade wore on, with the index declining 0.95 percent. Major exporters, including technology and automaker names, as well as financials traded in negative territory, although some manufacturing names clung to gains. Meanwhile, South Korea’s benchmark index slipped 0.44 percent. Automakers were sharply lower while steelmakers logged gains. Hyundai Motor fell 4.13 percent in the early going and Posco rose 2.19 percent.

In Currency Markets the US dollar held steady against a basket of major peers on Monday as traders braced for new Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s first monetary policy meeting this week, and as the increased threat of trade protectionism kept markets on edge. The dollar’s index against a basket of six major peers stood at 90.276. The Canadian dollar has taken the brunt of worries about U.S. protectionism, as investors discount the risk Trump may walk out of the North American Free Trade Agreement. The Canadian currency slipped to C$1.3111 per U.S. dollar earlier on Monday, its weakest level since June 2017.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell on Monday as increased drilling in the United States pointed to more output, raising concerns about a return of oversupply. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $62.02 a barrel, down 32 cents, or 0.5 percent, from their previous close. Brent crude futures were at $65.85 per barrel, down 36 cents, or 0.5 percent. Monday’s price falls in part reversed increases last Friday, which came on concerns over tensions in the Middle East. U.S. drillers added four oil rigs in the week to March 16, bringing the total count to 800, the weekly Baker Hughes drilling report said on Friday.

In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 and the Dow rose on Friday, boosted by strong industrial output numbers, though all three of Wall Street’s major indexes posted losses for the week. Energy led the major sectors of the S&P 500 with a 1.0 percent gain. The Nasdaq was barely changed at Friday’s market close. The S&P 500 gained 0.17 percent, to 2,752.01. Micron Technology Inc. rose 3.0 percent after Baird analysts raised their price target on the stock by $40 to $100. Western Digital Corp gained 4.1 percent, hitting a three-year high during the session, after Baird upgraded the stock’s rating to “outperform.”

In Bond Markets yields rose on Friday after data showed U.S. industrial production jumped in February and in anticipation of next week’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting, at which the U.S. central bank is expected to raise interest rates for the first time this year. Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes fell 7/32 in price to yield 2.848 percent, up from 2.824 percent on Thursday. The 30-year bond fell 10/32 in price to yield 3.077 percent, from 3.061 percent Thursday. The yield curve between two-year and 10-year notes steepened to 55 basis points, from 54 basis points on Thursday. The curve has flattened from 82 basis points on Feb. 12.