US stocks opened sharply lower in August, with all three major indexes falling more than 1%, as a weaker-than-expected jobs report fueled renewed concerns about the strength of the US labor market and the overall economy. Non-farm payrolls rose by just 73,000 in July, and employment figures for May and June were revised down by 258,000, adding to evidence that the labor market is slowing more rapidly than anticipated. The weaker data fueled expectations that the Fed would cut interest rates twice this year, with another cut likely in September. Market pressure intensified when President...
The Hang Seng Index opened significantly lower this morning, down by 632 points or 3.14% settling at 19,494 points. Likewise, the National Index dropped by 232 points, or 3.13%, to stand at 7,198 points, while the Technology Index suffered a decline of 194 points, or 4.26%, now at 4,373 points. In the export sector this morning, Shenzhou International Group Holdings (2313) opened down 6.1%, while Intime Group (1382) remained flat at the opening. Crystal International Group (2232) saw a decrease of 5.6%. The shipping and port stocks also faced a downturn; China Merchants Port Holdings (0144)...
The Nikkei 225 Index plunged 3.6% toward 31,800 while the broader Topix Index tumbled 2.9% to 2,362 on Wednesday, giving back gains from the previous session and tracking losses on Wall Street overnight as US President Donald Trump's new tariffs are set to come into effect later today. That would include a 24% tariff on Japanese goods and a 25% levy on car imports to the US. Meanwhile, Trump said that Japan is sending a team to negotiate on trade with the US, while Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba revealed that he told Trump in a phone call to rethink his tariff policies. Financial and...
Asia-Pacific markets fell on Wednesday as investors brace themselves for U.S. President Donald Trump's country-specific tariffs that are set to come into effect midnight stateside. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slid 1.06%. Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 3.14%, while the Topix traded 3.26% lower. South Korea's Kospi edged 0.18% lower while the small-cap Kosdaq lost 0.44%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 3.86%, while the Hang Seng Tech Index declined 5.42%.Additional tariffs will take effect just after U.S. midnight, adding to the 10% baseline duty that was already implemented on Saturday. Chinese...
The S&P 500 closed below 5,000 for the first time in nearly a year after a strong start to the session on Tuesday, amid growing concerns about a global trade war as the Trump administration prepares to raise tariffs on China at midnight. At 4:00 p.m. ET (21:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 320 points, or 0.8%, the S&P 500 was down 2% to close at 4,987.76 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 2.2%. The S&P 500, which rose about 4.1% at its high on the day, closed below 5,000 for the first time since April 19, 2024. Global trade war fears mount as tariffs on China...
European stock markets closed sharply higher in Tuesday trading as the Stoxx Europe 600 advanced 2.72%, Germany's DAX rose 2.48%, the FTSE 100 in London climbed 2.71%, France's CAC 40 increased 2.50%, and the Swiss Market Index surged 2.82%. US President Donald Trump rejected a European Union proposal to eliminate tariffs on bilateral trade in industrial goods, which means a 20% tariff on all EU imports will take effect Wednesday, Bloomberg reported Tuesday. Trump criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's offer as insufficient to reset the transatlantic trading...