In Asian Equity Markets indices were tepid on Wednesday morning, as risks of a no-deal Brexit ramped up again overnight. In mainland China, the Shanghai composite was flat. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.23%. Over in South Korea, the Kospi was flat, as was Australia’s S&P/ASX 200, with banks and major miners declining. Overall, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was flat. Exporters in Asia were watched on Wednesday.  Autos in Japan declined in the morning, with Mitsubishi down 0.83%, and Honda declining 0.34%. Toyota edged down 0.18%, and Suzuki declined 0.84%.

In Currency Markets the pound nursed heavy losses on Wednesday after tumbling when Britain re-set a hard deadline for quitting the European Union, rekindling old fears of a chaotic exit from the bloc. The 1.6% decline was the steepest in more than a year and wiped out gains after Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s landslide electoral victory last week. His government, which campaigned to “get Brexit done,” set the end of 2020 as an immovable deadline. Sterling, which jumped above $1.35 after Johnson’s win, last traded at $1.3133, below where it sat before polling day.

In Commodities Markets oil retreated on Wednesday after rising more than 1% in the previous session as U.S. industry data showed a surprise build in crude stocks, but hopes for firmer demand next year checked a deeper fall in prices. A “phase one” U.S.-China trade deal announced last week has helped ward off some pressure from the oil market, dampened by worries over the economic impact of a prolonged dispute between the world’s two biggest oil consumers. Brent crude futures fell 21 cents, or 0.32%, to $65.89 a barrel on Wednesday. The international benchmark rose 1.2% to $66.10 a barrel on Tuesday.

In US Equity Markets major indexes inched higher on Tuesday, extending their record-setting rally, as strong housing and manufacturing data bolstered investors’ confidence in the U.S. economy. The S&P 500 gained 0.03%, to 3,192.52 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.1%, to 8,823.36. Shares of Home Depot Inc rose 1.0% on the housing data and were among the biggest boosts to the Dow. Shares of rival Lowe’s Cos Inc fell 0.6%, however, after having risen earlier in the session. After the bell, FedEx Corp shares fell about 6% after the package-delivery company reported quarterly results.

In Bond Markets yields on super-long dated Japanese government bonds rose on Wednesday, after sources said the government is considering increasing issuance of 40-year debt next fiscal year. Japan plans to trim government total bond issuance by 0.5% next fiscal year from current year’s levels, government officials said, according to a Reuters report on Wednesday. The government is expected to finalise its draft budget for next fiscal year on Thursday. Benchmark 10-year JGB futures rose 0.08 point to 152.2, with a trading volume of 11,185 lots. The 10-year JGB yield was flat at minus 0.015%.