Asia-Pacific Markets Mixed Amid Rising Treasury Yields and Middle East Concerns

The Asia-Pacific markets experienced mixed performance on Monday amidst rising U.S. Treasury yields and concerns in the Middle East.

Last week, major U.S. tech stocks rose significantly, including a nearly 13% surge in Meta Platforms due to positive sentiment towards the launch of Muse AI. Microsoft gained over 4%, while Apple and Nvidia both finished with gains above 1%.

However, these advances came despite sharp increases in Treasury yields, which reached levels last seen in 2007 for the 10-year note and 2004 for the 30-year bond. The 2-year Treasury yield also rose by around 17 basis points, leading market participants to expect further U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hikes due to persisting inflation pressures.