Asia report: Markets finish mixed after Wall Street weakness

Stocks were mixed in Asia on Tuesday, as traders in Japan and South Korea returned from a holiday, while mainland China bourses led the handful of gains.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 2.64% at 26,401.25, as the yen strengthened 0.05% on the dollar to last trade at JPY 145.65.

Robotics specialist Fanuc was down 3.93%, Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing lost 3.87%, and tech investing giant SoftBank Group was 0.96% weaker.

The broader Topix index was off 1.86% by the end of trading in Tokyo, settling at 1,871.24.

Fresh data out of Japan showed the country’s current account surplus narrowing 96.1% year-on-year to JPY 58.9bn in August.

Economists had pencilled in a surplus of JPY 121.8bn in a Reuters poll, and the reading for July had come in at JPY 229bn.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.19% at 2,979.79, and the technology-centric Shenzhen Component was 0.53% firmer at 10,577.81.

South Korea’s Kospi was down 1.83% at 2,192.07, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong slid 2.23% to 16,832.36.

The blue-chip technology stocks were on the back foot in Seoul, with Samsung Electronics down 1.42% and SK Hynix losing 1.1%.

“The Nasdaq hit a two-year low [yesterday], pulled down by chip stocks after the US government announced further restrictions on China’s access to US semiconductor technology,” said CMC Markets chief market analyst Michael Hewson of the global situation on Tuesday morning.

“This move lower appears to have translated into weakness in Asia markets which have fallen sharply, while US 10-year yields have moved sharply higher, back to within touching distance of 4%.

“With the latest Fed minutes due tomorrow, and the latest US CPI report due on Thursday the mood is likely to remain a little fraught as markets assess the prospect of another 75-basis point rate move by the Fed in November, and the risks that the US central banks actions might have in pushing the global economy into recession.”

Oil prices were lower as the region went to bed, with Brent crude futures last down 1.65% on ICE to $94.60 per barrel, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate losing 1.88% to $89.42.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.34% to 6,645.00, while across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 was 0.35% higher at 10,956.71.

The down under dollars were both weaker against the greenback, with the Aussie last off 0.57% at AUD 1.5956, and the Kiwi retreating 0.11% to NZD 1.7982.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.