Asia markets trade mixed as tariff concerns weigh
Elizabeth Quay in Perth City
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Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Wednesday as investors assessed rising global bond yields and the latest developments on the trade front.
Chinese markets were in focus following President Xi Jinping’s speech at a military parade to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. The event was graced by 26 world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index increased by 0.86%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 ticked up 0.24% in early trade.
Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 benchmark declined by 1.09%. The country’s second-quarter GDP grew 1.8% year over year, marking the fastest pace of growth since September 2023. The latest reading beat the 1.6% growth expected by economists polled by Reuters, and was higher than the 1.3% seen in the previous quarter.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 0.41%, while the broader Topix index dropped by 0.53%.
Yields on Japanese Government Bonds (JGBs) rose, with the yield on 10-year JGBs up 2.6 basis points to 1.629% as of 10:45 a.m. local time (9:45 p.m. ET Tuesday).
Meanwhile, the yield on 30-year JGBs increased by nearly 7 basis point to 3.279%, surpassing its previous high in August, while yields on 20-year JGBs rose around 5.3 basis points to 2.684%, after hitting its highest level in 26 years earlier in the session.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi index ticked up 0.3% choppy trade, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.19%.
U.S. equity futures mostly rose in early Asia hours, after a federal court ruling on an antitrust case on Google-parent Alphabet fueled optimism that tech majors will be able to navigate regulatory threats.
Overnight stateside, all three key benchmarks ended the day lower.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 249.07 points, or 0.55% to close at 45,295.81. The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 0.69% to settle at 6,415.54, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.82% to close at 21,279.63.
— CNBC’s Pia Singh, Sean Conlon and Sarah Min contributed to this report.
