Asian Market Update: The sell off in stock markets gathered pace during the Asian session, after a weak close on Wall Street yesterday. Bonds found a footing and 10-year Treasury yields have dropped back below the 1.5% mark at currently 1.465%, down -5.5 bp on the day. JGB yields are up 2.0 bp at 0.16% though, and Australia's 10-year rate jumped another 17.2 bp to 1.898%, despite an unscheduled purchase operation from the RBA. There were more central bankers including JGB officials trying to calm reflation trades and pledge ongoing monetary support, but at this point analysts suspect that will only be able to slow, not reverse the uptrend in yields. Topix and Nikkei closed with losses of -3.2% and -3.99% respectively, the ASX corrected -2.4% and Hang Seng and CSI 300 are currently posting losses of -2.9% and -1.9%. With markets continuing to bet on a sharper than expected rebound in global growth and fears of cliff-edge scenarios on fiscal and monetary support are adding to volatility and sharp swings in markets. USD-JPY corrected to 106.15 as the yen managed broad gains. The front end WTI future meanwhile is trading at USD 62.74 per barrel.

U.S. consumer sentiment preview: analysts are forecasting an unchanged 76.2 print for the final February sentiment reading from the University of Michigan survey. But analysts see risk for an upward revision as stimulus deposits and expanding vaccine availability kicked in. Expectations fell to a 6-month low of 69.8 in the preliminary print after dipping to 74.0 in January. Current conditions fell to a 4-month low of 86.2 from 86.7. The 1-year inflation gauge rose to a 3.3% rate that was last seen in July of 2014, while the 5-10 year inflation gauge sustained the 2.7% January high also seen last August, September and May, and previously in March of 2016.