Hong Kong stocks opened higher on Tuesday, following Wall Street's rally, amid hopes of fresh stimulus after a report showed China's manufacturing activity remained weak. The Hang Seng Index rose 0.4% to 26,736.44, while Hang Seng Tech added 1%. Technology and e-commerce stocks led the gains, with Alibaba surging nearly 2%, JD.com rising 0.8%, and Semiconductor Manufacturing International surging 3.7%. Meanwhile, Baidu and Trip.com shares weakened, while New Oriental plunged nearly 2%. Official data showed China's manufacturing PMI in September stood at 49.8, marking the sixth consecutive...
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Friday as investors look to U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the central bank's annual economic symposium, which could offer clues into the path of interest rates. South Korea's jumped 1.22% and the small-cap Kosdaq was 0.94% higher. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 0.1% at the open, while the Topix rose 0.44%. The country's core inflation rate cooled to 3.1% in July, coming down from 3.3% the month before. The figure — which strips out costs for fresh food — was higher than the 3% expected by economists polled by Reuters. Rice...
The S&P 500 closed 0.4% lower on Thursday, marking its fifth consecutive decline as investors looked ahead to Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole. The Dow Jones slipped 153 points, while the Nasdaq 100 dropped 0.5% amid continued pressure on major tech stocks. Walmart dragged on sentiment, tumbling 4.5% after missing quarterly earnings expectations for the first time since 2022, despite lifting its full-year sales and profit outlook. Weakness across other retailers added to concerns about consumer resilience in the face of higher tariffs and uneven spending. On the data...
Stocks fell broadly on Thursday, with the S&P 500 down 0.4%, sliding for a fifth straight session as investors turned their focus to Fed Chair Powell's upcoming speech at Jackson Hole. The Dow Jones dropped 150 points, while the Nasdaq lost 0.5% amid ongoing weakness in big tech. Walmart weighed on markets after its shares slipped over 4% despite raising its full-year sales and profit outlook, as its quarterly earnings missed expectations for the first time since 2022. The disappointing results, combined with cautious signals from other major retailers, underscored consumer uncertainty...
European stocks closed lower, tracking the losses for government bonds in the Eurozone as markets assessed some clarity on trade between the EU and the US, fresh economic data, and their impact on rates. The STOXX 50 fell 0.3% to the 5,459, a second decline, while the STOXX 600 was flat near the five-month high yesterday of 559. The EU and the US moved closer to formalizing their trade deal that imposes 15% US tariffs on the EU, and specified that the pharmaceuticals, autos, and metals may face the 15% tariffs instead of the steeper Section 232 levies from the US. BMW, Mercedes Benz,...
US stocks were lower on Thursday, extending the poor momentum this week as markets assessed the outlook on rates and retailers' earnings for hints on the strength of the consumer. The three main equity indices were around 0.4% down, with the Nasdaq 100 set to drop sharply this week after a tech selloff. FOMC minutes showed that most members saw inflation risks as greater than labor market risks, while policymakers showed a degree of concerns that inflation expectations could become unanchored. Tech giants remained broadly under pressure as markets showed skepticism that AI services will...