China Markets Come Under Heavy Pressure

A mixed day for equities in the Asia-Pac region. Chinese equities have come under notable pressure, the downtick in margin balances lodged at the Shanghai exchange and withdrawal of the PBoC's late June seasonal liquidity injections over the last couple of days weighed, while some noted that the perceived "period of safety" ahead of the CCP's 100th anniversary (which was celebrated on Thursday) has now passed, which could be applying some pressure. Elsewhere, Sino-US tensions continue to bubble. Thursday saw US Commerce Secretary Raimondo note that the US "will make sure that the Chinese play by the rules, protect IP, allow our markets, our companies to access that market." Markets in Japan are higher alongside small gains in Australia, Taiwan and South Korea following a positive lead from the US; in South Korea inflation rose above the BoK's target but slowed down from last month. Futures are mixed in the US ahead of the NFP report later today; e-mini-Dow Jones and e-mini S&P contracts are higher while the Nasdaq has slipped slightly. Johnson & Johnson continued to gain after saying that its single-shot coronavirus vaccine is effective against the delta variant.