Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly higher Friday, tracking Wall Street gains as investors shrugged off the U.S. government shutdown. Investors are waiting to see how long the shutdown will last to assess the gravity of its economic repercussions. Historically, government shutdowns in the U.S. have not been market-moving events. Japan's September unemployment rate rose to 2.6%, government data showed Friday, higher than the 2.4% expected by economists polled by Reuters. The latest reading compared with the 2.3% unemployment rate in August. The country's September manufacturing purchasing...
(Hong Kong) The Hang Seng Index started the month of August by opening 28 points lower, marking a decrease of 0.12% at 24,744 points. The H-share index dropped by 12 points or 0.14%, reaching 8,870 points, while the technology index saw a decline of 5 points or 0.09%, standing at 5,447 points. In the tech sector, stock movements varied with Alibaba rising by 1.82%, Kuaishou up by 1.3%, and Tencent seeing a 0.27% increase. Conversely, Meituan fell by 0.41%, Xiaomi Group by 0.66%, and Trip.com Group by 1.42%. Financial stocks exhibited weakness, with HSBC Holdings dropping by 0.68%; AIA...
Japanese stocks are lower in early trade as caution over earnings and domestic politics continue. Chip and bank stocks are leading the declines. Lasertec is down 5.6% and Resona Holdings is 1.6% lower. Meanwhile, a weaker yen is offering some support for the market. USD/JPY is at 150.85, compared with 148.75 as of Thursday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are closely watching quarterly corporate results as well as any domestic political developments. Mitsubishi Chemical Group and Hoya Corp. are due to announce their earnings later in the day. The Nikkei Stock Average is down 0.5% at...
Asia-Pacific markets fell Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump modified "reciprocal" tariff rates on several countries, with updated duties ranging from 10% to 41%. Asia-Pacific markets started the day lower Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark fell 0.65%, while the broader Topix index was flat as of 8:15 a.m. Singapore time (8:15 p.m. ET Thursday). In South Korea, the Kospi index dropped 1.73%, while the small-cap Kosdaq declined by 2.1%. Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 benchmark fell 0.94%. Source: CNBC
The three US indices closed lower on Thursday, as gains in Microsoft and Meta failed to lift the broader market amid renewed trade uncertainties and economic concerns. The S&P 500 fell 0.5%, marking its third consecutive loss, while the Nasdaq 100 slipped 0.4%. The Dow dropped 330 points, dragged down by losses in healthcare stocks. Market sentiment was dented by President Trump's decision to extend a 25% tariff on Mexican imports and looming deadlines for broader trade actions. The Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the core PCE, rose 0.3% in June and 2.8% from a year earlier, adding to...
The European stock markets closed lower in Thursday trading as the FTSE 100 in London slid 0.05%, Germany's DAX dropped 0.73%, France's CAC 40 fell 1.14%, The Stoxx Europe 600 slipped 0.71%, and the Swiss Market Index lost 0.8%. The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in the eurozone stood at 6.2% in June, unchanged from a revised figure in May, according to Eurostat data. In Germany, import prices dropped 1.4% year-over-year in June after a 1.1% fall in May, according to the country's Federal Statistical Office. German import prices were unchanged on a monthly basis. In corporate news,...