Asian Markets Show Mixed Trend

Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Tuesday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with uncertainty of interest rates and the coronavirus infections in the region tempered by support from climbing crude oil prices. The mood also remained somewhat cautious with investors continuing to keep an eye on developments surrounding debt-laden China Evergrande. Asian stocks ended on a mixed note on Monday.

The Australian stock market is notably lower on Tuesday, giving up the modest gains in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,200 level, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with weakness in materials and technology stocks partially offset by strength in energy and financial stocks. The domestic coronavirus situation, primarily in New South Wales and Victoria, is also denting investor sentiment.

Australia’s two biggest cities, Sydney and Melbourne, are also still under lockdown. NSW has reported 863 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths on Monday. Victoria reported a record 867 new locally acquired cases and four deaths, with the active cases totalling 9,261 across Victoria.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 71.60 points or 0.97 percent to 7,312.60, after hitting a low of 7,305.60 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 74.30 points or 0.97 percent to 7,616.40. Australian stocks closed modestly higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group is losing almost 1 percent, while Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are declining more than 2 percent each. OZ Minerals and Rio Tinto are down more than 1 percent each.

Oil stocks are higher after as crude oil prices climbed for its fifth straight day. Santos and Oil Search are gaining almost 3 percent each, while Woodside Petroleum is adding almost 4 percent, Origin Energy is rising more than 4 percent and Beach energy is surging almost 8 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is gaining almost 1 percent, while ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are edging up 0.4 percent each. Westpac is edging up 0.1 percent

Among tech stocks, Xero is losing almost 5 percent, Appen is declining almost 3 percent, WiseTech Global is lower by more than 3 percent and Afterpay is down more than 1 percent.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Gold Road Resources and Resolute Mining are losing almost 2 percent each, while Evolution Mining is declining more than 4 percent, Northern Star Resources is down almost 4 percent and Newcrest Mining is lower by more than 2 percent.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.730 on Tuesday.

The Japanese stock market is modestly lower on Tuesday, extending the slight loss in the previous session, with the benchmark Nikkei index staying above the 30,000 mark, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with investors being cautious as they awaited a vote on Wednesday that will decide who will be country’s next prime minister after incumbent Yoshihide Suga. The domestic coronavirus situation is also a cause of worry, despite the recent decline in case count.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 30,139.65, down 100.41 points or 0.33 percent, after hitting a low of 30,001.99 earlier. Japanese shares closed slightly lower on Monday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is up more than 2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining almost 2 percent and Toyota is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is gaining more than 4 percent, while Screen Holdings and Tokyo Electron are losing more than 2 percent each. In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is gaining almost 1 percent, while Mizuho Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are edging up 0.3 percent each.

The major exporters are mixed, with Sony declining almost 1 percent, while Canon is gaining 1.5 percent. Mitsubishi Electric and Panasonic are flat.

Among the other major losers, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha is plummeting more than 15 percent, Nippon Yusen K.K. is plunging more than 11 percent, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines is losing more than 9 percent, M3 is down almost 4 percent and Taiyo Yuden is declining more than 3 percent. Nissan Chemical, CyberAgent, Shionogi & Co., Hitachi Zosen, Toho Zinc, Kikkoman and Yaskawa Electric are lower by almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Impex is gaining 3.5 percent, Eisai is adding more than 3 percent and Credit Saison is up almost 3 percent.

In economic news, members of the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy board felt that while the country’s economy continues to improve, it remains in dire straits because of the Covid-19 pandemic, minutes from the central bank’s meeting on July 15 and 16 revealed on Tuesday. Global financial markets remain unsettled but are trending in the right direction as vaccinations fuel a broadly based economic recovery, the minutes showed.

The members also said they would continue the monetary easing for as long as necessary in order to consistently achieve the 2 percent inflation target. At the meeting, the BoJ decided to keep its monetary stimulus unchanged and unveiled a preliminary outline for the new program to support efforts on climate change.

The bank also lowered its near-term growth outlook citing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and raised its fiscal 2021 inflation forecast. The board also voted to hold the interest rate at -0.1 percent on current accounts that financial institutions maintain at the central bank.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 111 yen-range on Tuesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is gaining 1.6 percent and China is adding 0.3 percent, while New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea are lower by between 0.1 and 0.8 percent. Indonesia and Malaysia are relatively flat.

On Wall Street, stocks ended on a mixed note on Monday with investors largely making cautious moves as they looked ahead to speeches from several Fed officials, including Chairman Jerome Powell, and continued to keep an eye on the developments surrounding debt-laden China Evergrande.

Among the major averages, the Dow, which rose to 35,061 by mid morning, closed with a gain of 71.37 point or 0.21 percent at 34,869.37. The S&P 500, moved between 4,436.19 and 4,457.30, settled with a loss of 12.37 points or 0.28 percent at 4,443.11, while the Nasdaq settled at 14,969.97, losing 77.73 points or 0.52 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets closed slightly higher on the day. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 gained 0.17 percent, Germany’s DAX climbed 0.27 percent and France’s CAC 40 moved up 0.19 percent.

Crude oil prices rose sharply on Monday, extending gains to a fifth session amid tighter supplies and signs of rising demand for oil. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November ended up by $1.47 or 2 percent at $75.45 a barrel.

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