South Korea inflation, China reopening

Yamaguchi emerges as a candidate for the next governor of the Bank of Japan: Sankei

Former Bank of Japan deputy governor Hirohide Yamaguchi is emerging as a candidate to lead the central bank, local Japanese media Sankei reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Yamaguchi, who held the post of deputy central banker until 2013, has been a vocal critic of current governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s ultra-hawkish monetary policy.

The paper added that Yamaguchi would signal a shift away from former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s economic stimulus strategy also known as “Abenomics”.

Sankei reported that Yamaguchi is drawing attention as current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida moves away from a stimulus-oriented monetary stance, and that the nomination for the next central bank chief would be made clear next month.

– Jihye Lee

Foreign talent will be less likely to come to Singapore after Hong Kong reopens, says UOB

With Hong Kong reopening, foreign nationals may be less inclined to move to Singapore, said Alvin Liew, senior economist at United Overseas Bank.

“Singapore has benefited in terms of the talent pool that came here because of the stricter regulations in Hong Kong itself,” Liew said, adding that the flow of labor moving to Singapore “may see an easing” now that the city has reopened.

“The talent pool itself may be less inclined to move here,” said the Singapore-based economist.

Liew also added that Hong Kong’s reopening is a step in the right direction for the region to “return to business as usual,” Liew said.

– Charmaine Jacob

China’s markets will see a “tactical” recovery next year, analyst says

Chinese markets are likely to see a “tactical puff” of a recovery in the coming year, Port Shelter Investment Management said.

“It’s fair to say we’re likely to see a tactical jump,” Richard Harris, the firm’s chief executive, told CNBC.

“It will be tactical because China, at the end of the day, has to adjust to the rest of the world,” he said.

Harris expects China’s recovery to take place in the first quarter of the year and to continue sentiment in the second quarter.

That recovery also depends on many currently unknown elements, such as whether major stimulus will be injected into the Chinese economy and what will happen to inflation when the economy grows, he added.

-Lee Ying Shan

China’s new tech ETF could ‘bring retail liquidity’ to Singapore market: Investment firm

CSI Star and ChiNext 50 Index Exchange Traded Fund in Singapore could bring liquidity from mainland China to Singapore, Ding Chen, CEO of CSOP Asset Management, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”

The firm’s ETF was listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange on Friday and is a sub-fund of CSOP SG ETF Series I, a Singapore unit trust, according to the fund’s website.

“Through SGX, Singapore investors and global investors can also access China-listed ETFs,” said Ding, adding that Chinese investors can also directly invest in Singapore ETFs.

When asked about the evolution of the firm’s ETF portfolio, Ding said it will “bring more new and new generations of technology companies” to the market.

– Sheila Chiang

South Korea’s inflation was unchanged in December

South Korea’s December consumer price index rose 5% year-on-year, statistics from the Bank of Korea showed.

The reading held cooler levels for the month and was unchanged from November.

The print is in line with the expectations of economists polled by Reuters.

– Jihye Lee

Stocks close higher on Thursday

All major averages finished higher on Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 345.09 points, or 1.05%. The S&P 500 gained 1.75% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.59% to 10,478.09.

– Tanaya Machel

CNBC Pro: Chip stocks have done poorly this year — but this fund manager is still good, citing 2 to buy Jobless filings rose last week; ongoing claims hit the highest since February

Jobless claims rose last week amid efforts by the Federal Reserve to cool the economy and the labor market in particular.

First-time filings for unemployment benefits reached 225,000 for the week ended Dec. 24, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That was up 9,000 from last week and slightly above the 223,000 estimate by the Dow Jones.

Long-term, ongoing claims, which stand a week behind the headline number, jumped to 1.71 million, a 41,000 increase to the highest level since early February.

The numbers at this time of year are always loud because of the holidays. Claims not adjusted for seasonal factors rose by 23,146, an increase of 9.3%.

– Jeff Cox

CNBC Pro: Citi names its best biotech stocks for 2023 — and gives it a 73% upside

According to Citi, Biotech is set to remain a “stock picker’s market” in 2023.

The bank explains how biotech could perform under different economic scenarios and names three top picks for 2023.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

– Weizhen Tan