Asia’s Tokyo, Hong Kong down as stocks worldwide gain in early sessions
Better late than never: India responds to Belt and Road with Mideast-India railway-corridorALBAWABA – Stocks worldwide rallied on Monday on optimism that China’s economy is stabilizing as the Japanese Yen and Chinese Yuan gained against the United States (US) Dollar, with the Tokyo and Hong Kong’s indexes sliding in the early sessions.
The European Stoxx 600 Index gained 0.5 percent by 08:02 a.m. in London, led higher by cyclical sectors such as basic resources and banks, Bloomberg reported, while US contracts pointed to gains on Wall Street.
Equities in the US and Europe rallied after US Treasury Secretary Yellen said she’s increasingly confident that the US will be able to contain inflation without major damage to the job market.
As more Chinese cities lift home-buying curbs to revive demand, indicators pointing to a stronger market in China revived optimising that China’s economy may be on the mend.
Indicators point to the Chinese economy stabilizing boosting stocks worldwide - Shutterstock
China has enacted multiple, micro-measures to help stimulate domestic demand and drive growth to achieve the 5 percent target for 2023. Such measures span the electric vehicles, banking and real estate sectors, in addition to exceptional credit facilities for specific sectors. Not to mention a major fund for chipmakers, announced earlier this week.
According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), stock indexes in Tokyo, Taipei, Bangkok and Wellington fell on Monday as Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Mumbai, Manila and Jakarta rose. Along with London, Paris and Frankfurt.
Tokyo's blue chip shares, weighed down by the Yen’s gains and the rise of Japan’s bond yields.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.43 percent, or 139.08 points, to 32,467.76, AFP reported, while the broader Topix index edged up 0.06 percent, or 1.46 points, to 2,360.48.
Meanwhile in China, the Hang Seng Index sank 1.43 percent, or 260.42 points, to 17,941.65. Whereas the Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.09 percent, or 2.89 points, to 3,119.61, as the Shenzhen Composite Index on China's second exchange gained 0.05 percent, or 1.03 points, to 1,936.57.
In the US, S&P 500 futures, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures all rose by 0.3 percent, 0.5 percent, and 0.2 percent, respectively.
As for other indexes and stocks worldwide, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5 percent and the MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.1 percent, as reported by Bloomberg.
Yuan, Yen gains weigh on Tokyo, Hong Kong stocks while boosting stocks worldwide
The yen gained over 1 percent against the US dollar, touching a one-week high of 145.99 per dollar, according to Reuters, after official statements over the weekend indicating the central bank may raise interest rates soon.
China’s onshore yuan pulled away from Friday's 16-year low after China's central bank on Monday set the daily midpoint guidance with the strongest bias on record, Reuters reported.
Asian stocks are susceptible to gains in the Yuan and Yen against the Dollar as it weighs on their stocks as stocks worldwide rise - Shutterstock
The onshore and offshore yuan rose 1 percent to 7.2766 and 7.2956 per dollar, respectively.
Westward, the Pound Sterling jumped nearly 0.5 percent against the dollar to $1.2523 and the euro similarly gained 0.36 percent to $1.0738, Reuters reported, after having ended Friday with an eight-week losing streak.
The dollar index, which capped the end of last week with eight straight weeks of gains, fell 0.31 percent.
Market summary by AFP and Bloomberg
Stocks
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.4 percent at 32,467.76 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 18,096.45 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 3,142.78 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.9 percent at 7,542.75
The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.5 percent as of 8:05 a.m. London time
S&P 500 futures rose 0.3 percent
Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.5 percent
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 percent
MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5 percent
MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.1 percent
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.5 percent
The euro rose 0.3 percent to $1.0732
The Japanese yen rose 1.2 percent to 146.04 per dollar
The offshore yuan rose 0.9 percent to 7.3013 per dollar
The British pound rose 0.4 percent to $1.2518
Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin was little changed at $25,835.45
Ether fell 0.2 percent to $1,615.07
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced two basis points to 4.28 percent
Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.63 percent
Britain’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 4.45 percent
