Asian Shares Mixed As Trump Claims Victory

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday, while the dollar and bond yields edged up as U.S. Republican candidate Donald Trump won two crucial swing states, North Carolina and Georgia, and tightened his hold on key battlegrounds in the race for the White House.

While Japanese markets rallied on the back of a weaker yen, Hong Kong shares led losses on concerns that Trump's tariff plans could reignite U.S.-China trade tensions.

Gold prices were down nearly 1 percent in Asian trade on dollar strength while oil prices fell more than 1 percent after industry data showed a jump in U.S. crude stockpiles.

China's Shanghai Composite index fluctuated before finishing marginally lower at 3,383.81 after the head of the People's Bank of China said in a closely watched meeting that the central bank intends to "increase the intensity of counter-cyclical monetary policy."

The meeting of the National People's Congress Standing Committee., which wraps up Friday, is widely expected to approve additional stimulus measures.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index tumbled 2.23 percent to 20,538.38 on concerns over Trump's more protectionist policies.

Japanese shares logged strong gains as the U.S. dollar rose sharply to hit a three-month high in the lower 154-yen zone, boosting export-related stocks.

The Nikkei average ended up 2.61 percent at 39,480.67, after briefly surging over 3 percent. The broader Topix index closed 1.94 percent higher at 2,715.92.

Lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group jumped 5.7 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group surged 6.9 percent amid expectations of higher bond yields under Trump.

Semiconductor-linked shares such as Advantest and Tokyo Electron soared 8.2 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.

Seoul stocks ended lower as bond yields jumped on bets that Donald Trump would win the U.S. presidential election. The Kospi average dropped 0.52 percent to 2,563.51.

Australian markets rose notably in a widespread rally led by banks and technology stocks. WiseTech Global, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB and Xero rose 1-2 percent.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.83 percent to 8,199.50, while the broader All Ordinaries index closed 0.81 percent higher at 8,456.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index finished marginally lower at 12,649.17 after a choppy session as data showed the country's jobless rate rose less than forecast in the third quarter.

U.S. stocks rose sharply in a broad rally overnight as Americans voted in one of the tightest presidential elections in decades and data showed the U.S. services sector accelerated to a more than two-year high in October.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.4 percent, the S&P 500 rallied 1.2 percent and the Dow added 1 percent.