Asia Pacific markets fell on Friday, led by Chinese stocks, as investor sentiment takes a hit over worsening U.S.-China tensions and a sell-off in U.S. markets overnight.
In mainland China, Shanghai composite was down 1.74%, while the Shenzhen composite tumbled 1.89%. The Shenzhen component dived 2.88%.
Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index declined 1.32%. Tech stocks fell across the board, with Tencent declining almost 3% and Alibaba down 1.78%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 tumbled 0.93%, with losses seen in the heavily weighted financials sector and oil stocks.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi was flat.
Markets in Japan are closed for a holiday on Friday.
Overall, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.74%.
Earnings expected on Friday include Hong Kong's Fortune REIT, as well as South Korea's Hyundai Mobis and Samsung SDS.
Investors will monitor U.S.-China tensions, which continued to take center stage.
After the U.S. government ordered the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slammed China in a speech on Thursday. He said Washington will no longer tolerate Beijing's attempts to usurp global order.
"For now, US-China conflict risks are poised to reinforce pre-existing negative bias in the Asia session, derived from 1.2%-1.3% drop in Wall St that had predated Pompeo's remarks," Mizuho Bank's Vishnu Varathan, head of economics and strategy, wrote in a note.
He said that in China's response to the escalating tensions, its priority is likely to ensure that markets remain stable.
"We expect the PBoC to double down on CNY stability," Varathan wrote. "What's more, this will be complemented by policies that support 'reasonable' buoyancy in equity markets, which help boost wider wealth creation, increase access to capital for industry champions (to better position against US), and crucially underpin capital stability."
Over in the U.S., a sell-off in tech stocks and worse-than-expected jobless claims also hit sentiment.
Apple fell 4.5% and Microsoft tumbled 4.3%, pushing the broader market lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 353.51 points, or 1.3%, to 26,652.33. The S&P 500 slid 1.2%, or 40.36 points, to 3,235.66, snapping a four-day winning streak. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.2%, or 244.71 points, to 10,461.42.
Apple shares slid after reports surfaced that a number of states investigating the tech giant's potential violations of a consumer protection law. Apple is facing antitrust scrutiny in the U.S. and abroad and its CEO will face Congress on Monday alongside Big Tech peers.
U.S. weekly jobless claims came in at 1.416 million for last week, marking the 18th straight week in which initial claims totaled more than 1 million. That was worse than the 1.3 million expected by economists in a Dow Jones poll.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 94.609, continuing its steady decline this week. It slipped below the 95 level on Thursday.
The Japanese yen traded at 106.50 per dollar, after wavering between 106 and 107 for most of this week. The Australian dollar stayed above the 0.71 level, last changing hands around 0.7119.
Oil prices inched up in the morning of Asian trading hours. International benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.28% to $43.43 per barrel. U.S. crude futures edged up 0.29% to $41.19 per barrel.
What's on tap (all times in HK/SIN):
- 10:30 a.m.: Singapore's unemployment rate
- 1:00 p.m.: Singapore's industrial production for June
- Earnings: Hong Kong's Fortune REIT, South Korea's Hyundai Mobis, Samsung SDS
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July 24, 2020 at 06:33AM
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Chinese stocks lead losses as investor sentiment wanes over U.S.-China tensions, Big Tech sell-off - CNBC
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