Asian stocks ended broadly lower on Tuesday as surging coronavirus cases in the region and the possible restrictions on economic activity in several countries dented investor optimism about a global economic recovery.
Chinese shares ended slightly lower as the country’s central bank kept its benchmark lending rates unchanged, as widely expected. The one-year loan prime rate was retained at 3.85 percent and the five-year loan prime rate was maintained at 4.65 percent.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite index slipped 4.61 points, or 0.13 percent, to 3,472.94, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index edged up 29.58 points, or 0.10 percent, to 29,135.73.
Japanese shares tumbled amid growing concerns over another virus state of emergency in the country just three months before the country hosts the Olympics.
The Nikkei average fell 584.99 points, or 1.97 percent, to 29,100.38, snapping a three-day winning streak.
The broader Topix index closed 1.55 percent lower at 1,926.25 as investors took in calls for new states of emergency in the Osaka region and possibly Tokyo.
Toyota Motor dropped 1.2 percent after a report the carmaker sees “cloudier” chip supply later this year. Subaru lost 2.8 percent after saying it was suspending production at its plant in Indiana through the end of April due to chip shortages.
SoftBank Group declined 1.8 percent after the U.K. government said it would look into the national security implications of U.S. group Nvidia’s purchase of British chip designer Arm Holdings.
Australian markets slipped from 14-month highs, with banks and tech companies retreating. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 47.80 points, or 0.68 percent, to 7,017.80 after five days of gains. The broader All Ordinaries index ended down 45.90 points, or 0.63 percent, at 7,282.10.
Tech stocks declined, with Xero and Appen falling around 1.4 percent. Buy-now-pay-later company Afterpay shed 0.8 percent after saying it is exploring a U.S. listing.
The big four banks ended down between half a percent and 1.2 percent. Mining giant Rio Tinto gave up half a percent after releasing its first-quarter production results.
Lynas Rare Earths slumped 8.3 percent after it reported a slight drop in its quarterly rare earths output. Challenger plummeted 15.8 percent after the retirement income and investment manager said normalized profit for the full-year 2021 will be nearer to the bottom of its guidance range.
In economic news, minutes from the RBA’s monetary policy meeting on April 6 showed that the central bank is in no hurry to tighten policy settings.
Seoul stocks hit a record high amid strong buying by foreign investors ahead of earnings from carmakers and tech firms. The benchmark Kospi rose 21.86 points, or 0.68 percent, to 3,220.70, marking a record closing high and extending gains for the seventh straight session.
New Zealand shares ended lower, dragged down by utilities. The benchmark NX-50 index dropped 89.28 points, or 0.70 percent, to 12,678.55 while shares of Meridian Energy, Mercury NZ and Contact Energy lost 2-3 percent.
U.S. stocks slipped from record highs overnight as investors looked ahead to more earnings news and economic data to gauge whether high valuations are justified.
The Dow slipped 0.4 percent, the S&P 500 shed half a percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 1 percent.
Business News
Asian Shares Broadly Lower On Covid-19 Worries
2021-04-20 08:39:23
