The Hang Seng Index reversed its downward trend in Hong Kong on Thursday (February 12th), weakening by around 0.9% to around 27,000 after a strong session earlier. This decline halted the momentum of the short term rally, as investors began to reduce risk in large cap stocks. Among the index's contributors, Tencent was a major drag, with its shares falling by around 2.3%, putting pressure on the technology sector, which has recently been a driving force behind market gains. Weakness in large cap companies like this typically quickly impacts sentiment due to their significant weighting in...
Asia-Pacific markets rose on Tuesday as Wall Street rallied overnight on hopes that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs could be softer than expected. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.69% in early trade. The country's budget will be tabled by Treasurer Jim Chalmers later in the day. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 started the day up 1.15%, while the broader Topix index gained 0.91%. In South Korea, the Kospi index opened 0.61% higher and the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.64%. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index last traded at 23,609, indicating a weaker open compared with the HSI's...
President Donald Trump on Monday said he will soon announce tariffs targeting automobiles, pharmaceuticals and other industries, signaling his plans to pile more sweeping duties on top of his forthcoming "reciprocal tariffs." "We'll be announcing cars very shortly," Trump said at a Cabinet meeting. "We already announced steel, as you know, and aluminum." "We'll be announcing pharmaceuticals at some point," he said, "because we have to have pharmaceuticals." "So we'll be announcing some of these things in the very near future, not the long future, the very near future," Trump said. Trump...
European markets closed slightly lower on Monday as optimism over the path of U.S. tariffs faded. Concluding a choppy session, the pan-European Stoxx 600 ended 0.13% lower, with Germany's DAX down 0.17%, France's CAC 40 down 0.26%, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 down 0.1%. The travel and leisure sector was up 0.55% after London's Heathrow Airport reopened on Saturday following a power outage caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation that disrupted Friday service. British Airways owner IAG was up 0.8%. Swedish defense firm Saab gained 4.5% after UBS upgraded its stock from neutral to...
European markets were mixed on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at tariff "flexibility." The pan-European Stoxx 600 was little-changed by 4 p.m. in London, with Germany's DAX down 0.06%, France's CAC 40 down 0.23%, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 trading flat. The travel and leisure sector was up 0.59% after London's Heathrow Airport reopened on Saturday following a power outage caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation that disrupted Friday service. British Airways owner IAG was up 0.9%. Swedish defense firm Saab was up 4.5% after UBS upgraded its stock from neutral to...
Stocks in the US kicked off the week in the green, with the S&P 500 adding 1%, the Nasdaq soaring 1.5% and the Dow Jones gaining 350 points, as traders hope the new US tariffs set to take effect on April 2nd could be softer and more targeted than initially anticipated. Reports emerged that President Donald Trump's coming wave of tariffs is poised to be more targeted than the barrage he has occasionally threatened. All sectors were in the green, but consumer discretionary, tech and communication services outperformed. Shares of Tesla soared more than 5% and other megacaps were also...