Asian Shares Slide As Focus Shifts To Tariffs And Fed Meeting

RTTNews | 1 day ago

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks fell broadly on Monday as investors reacted to weak Chinese data and awaited interest-rate decisions from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Banks this week for directional cues.

Gold retreated and the dollar gained following U.S. President Donald Trump's brief imposition of tariffs on Colombia. Oil traded lower as Trump reiterated calls for OPEC to cut prices.

China's Shanghai Composite finished marginally lower at 3,250.60 after new data showed Chinese manufacturing activity unexpectedly shrank in January and non-manufacturing activity growth slowed sharply - raising concerns about Q1 2025 growth and the effectiveness of stimulus measures.

Also, profits at China's industrial firms fell for a third straight year in 2024, official data showed on Monday, highlighting the need for increased economic support.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose by 0.53 percent to 20,172.10, with Chinese tech companies such as Tencent and Alibaba leading the surge.

Japanese markets fell sharply as a slump in tech stocks overshadowed gains in the financial sector. The Nikkei average dipped 0.92 percent to 39,565.80 while the broader Topix index settled 0.26 percent higher at 2,758.07.

Technology stocks such as Tokyo Electron, SoftBank Group, Advantest and Fujikura plunged 5-11 percent amid DeepSeek's emergence as a disruptive force in the AI landscape.

Chinese firm DeepSeek's artificial intelligence chatbot has soared to the top of the Apple Store's download charts, casting doubt on Silicon Valley's hefty AI capex spending and the sustainability of the US technical edge in artificial intelligence.

Lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial gained 0.7 percent while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial and Mizuho Financial both added 1.6 percent on expectations that higher interest rates will produce stronger domestic profits.

Seoul markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday. The Australian market was closed for Australia Day. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index slipped 0.19 percent to 12,999.72.

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday but notched back-to-back weekly gains on optimism over Trump's pro-business policies and his calls for lower interest rates and oil prices.

In economic releases, U.S. consumer sentiment declined in January for the first time in six months while existing home sales rose to a 10-month high in December, separate reports revealed.

The S&P 500 ended 0.3 percent lower after hitting a new record earlier in the session. The Dow also dipped 0.3 percent while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed half a percent.

Asian Markets Mixed In Holiday Trading

Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Tuesday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders are reluctant to make any significant moves with most of the major markets in the region are closed for Lunar New Year holidays. They also remain cautious ahead of the monetary policy announcements from the Bank of Canada, the US Fed and the European Central Bank later in the week.

RTTNews | 5h 39min ago

Australian Market Relatively Flat In Mid-market

The Australian stock market is relatively flat in mid-market trading on Tuesday after alternating across the unchanged line, after the gains in the previous session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is staying above the 8,400.00 level, with gains in iron ore miners and financial stocks partially offset by weakness in gold miners, energy and technology stocks.

RTTNews | 6h 10min ago

Sensex, Nifty Seen Tad Higher At Open

Indian shares are seen opening a tad higher on Tuesday after two straight sessions of losses.

RTTNews | 6h 18min ago

Japanese Market Sharply Lower

The Japanese stock market is trading sharply lower on Tuesday, extending the losses in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with the Nikkei 225 falling to remain a tad above the 38,100 level, with weakness across most sectors led by index heavyweights and technology stocks. Financial stocks were the only bright spot.

RTTNews | 7h 34min ago

Australian Market Slightly Higher

The Australian stock market is slightly higher on Tuesday after opening in the green and briefly slipping into the red, extending the gains in the previous session, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is the 8,400 level, with gains in iron ore miners and financial stocks partially offset by losses in gold miners, energy and technology stocks.

RTTNews | 7h 52min ago

Lower Open Anticipated For Thai Stock Market

The Thai stock market has finished lower in two of three trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had improved more than 20 points or 1.6 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just above the 1,340-point plateau and it's looking at another soft start again on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak, with oil and technology stocks expected to lead the way lower. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit. The SET finished modestly lower on Monday as losses from the consumer, property, resource, service and technology sectors were mitigated by support from the food, financial and industrial companies. For the day, the index dropped 13.13 points or 0.97 percent to finish at 1,340.94 after trading between 1,340.54 and 1,354.74. Volume was 6.938 billion shares worth 30.721 billion baht. There were 305 decliners and 174 gainers, with 187 stocks finishing unchanged. Among the actives, Thailand Airport tumbled 1.33 percent, while Asset World retreated 1.28 percent, Banpu added 0.94 percent, Bangkok Bank advanced 0.98 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical skidded 0.85 percent, Bangkok Expressway spiked 2.26 percent, B. Grimm declined 1.27 percent, BTS Group increased 0.81 percent, CP All Public gained 0.45 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods soared 3.60 percent, Energy Absolute skyrocketed 12.93 percent, Gulf stumbled 1.65 percent, Kasikornbank collected 0.32 percent, Krung Thai Bank rallied 2.21 percent, Krung Thai Card shed 0.49 percent, PTT Oil & Retail sank 0.86 percent, PTT Exploration and Production lost 0.82 percent, PTT Global Chemical dropped 0.89 percent, Siam Commercial Bank improved 0.81 percent, Siam Concrete slumped 0.96 percent, TTB Bank climbed 1.07 percent and SCG Packaging, Advanced Info, True Corporation, PTT and Thai Oil were unchanged.

RTTNews | 7h 57min ago

Win Streak May End For Hong Kong Stock Market

The Hong Kong stock market has moved higher in two straight sessions, advancing almost 500 points or 2.5 percent along the way. The Hang Seng now sits just beneath the 20,200-point plateau although it may run out of steam on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak, with oil and technology stocks expected to lead the way lower. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit. The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Monday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and technology companies. For the day, the index improved 131.58 points or 0.66 percent to finish at 20,197.77 after trading between 20,118.02 and 20,296.94. Among the actives, Alibaba Group and ENN Energy Holdings both soared 2.95 percent, while Alibaba Health Info advanced 1.17 percent, ANTA Sports gained 0.80 percent, China Life Insurance collected 0.41 percent, China Mengniu Dairy picked up 0.39 percent, China Resources Land rallied 1.72 percent, CITIC sank 0.45 percent, CNOOC climbed 1.19 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical strengthened 1.58 percent, Galaxy Entertainment surged 3.31 percent, Haier Smart Home spiked 2.16 percent, Hang Lung Properties skyrocketed 4.37 percent, Henderson Land perked 0.23 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas improved 1.35 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China jumped 1.71 percent, JD.com added 1.03 percent, Lenovo was up 0.21 percent, Li Auto accelerated 2.56 percent, Li Ning lost 0.25 percent, Meituan eased 0.20 percent, New World Development gathered 0.48 percent, Nongfu Spring oved up 0.14 percent, Techtronic Industries tumbled 1.42 percent, Xiaomi Corporation rose 0.68 percent and WuXi Biologics increased 1.21 percent.

RTTNews | 8h 27min ago

Singapore Shares Likely To Open In The Red On Tuesday

The Singapore stock market has moved lower in consecutive trading days, easing almost 10 points or 0.3 percent in that span. The Straits Times Index now sits just beneath the 3,800-point plateau and it's expected to extend its losses again on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak, with oil and technology stocks expected to lead the way lower. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit. The STI finished modestly lower on Monday following losses from the trusts, gains from the banks and mixed performances from the properties and industrials. For the day, the index lost 7.55 points or 0.20 percent to finish at 3,796.71 after trading between 3,790.75 and 3,806.06. Among the actives, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust retreated 1.03 percent, while City Developments sank 0.40 percent, DBS Group collected 0.21 percent, DFI Retail added 0.44 percent, Genting Singapore tumbled 1.34 percent, Hongkong Land rallied 1.41 percent, Keppel DC REIT plummeted 7.93 percent, Keppel Ltd slumped 0.73 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust plunged 2.73 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation perked 0.12 percent, SATS dropped 0.58 percent, Seatrium Limited tanked 1.77 percent, SembCorp Industries lost 0.36 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering jumped 1.46 percent, Thai Beverage declined 0.93 percent, Wilmar International skidded 0.65 percent, Yangzijiang Financial climbed 1.11 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding strengthened 1.34 percent and Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust, CapitaLand Investment, SingTel, Emperador, Mapletree Logistics Trust and Comfort DelGro were unchanged. The lead from Wall Street is pretty awful as the major averages opened under water on Monday. The Dow managed to climb into positive territory, but the NASDAQ and S&P 500 finished with heavy losses.

RTTNews | 8h 57min ago

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