Asia report: Markets mixed after stellar session stateside
Markets in Asia finished mixed on Wednesday, after a solid close on Wall Street overnight which saw the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record highs as traders continued to cheer a fresh trade deal between the US and Mexico.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.15% to 22,848.22, as the yen weakened 0.02% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 111.21.
Shipping plays extended Tuesday’s gains through the Wednesday session, with that sector finishing the day up 2.88%.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.31% at 2,769.30, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite slid 0.56% to 1,489.29.
South Korea’s Kospi was ahead 0.26% at 2,309.03, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 0.23% higher at 28,416.44.
While investors spent Tuesday digesting news that the US and Mexico had reached a trade deal to replace the decades-old NAFTA, on Wednesday they were met with news that Canadian foreign minister Chrystia Freeland had arrived in DC to resume that country’s talks with Washington.
Oil prices were higher, with Brent crude last up 0.05% at $75.99 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate rising 0.12% to $68.61.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.75% to settle at 6,352.20.
Among the big winners of the day in Sydney was building supplier Boral, which surged 10.12% after reports that its full-year net profit after tax was 48.5% higher.
Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 rose 1.6% to a fresh record of 9,362.67, completing a full session of trading after Tuesday’s hiccups.
The Wellington bourse was open for just 75 minutes on Tuesday, before a series of technical glitched brought it down and kept it closed for the rest of the day.
Self-listed exchange operator NZX said it was now conduction an internal investigation, and would report to the market on that in a matter of days.
Both of the down under dollars were weaker on the greenback, with the Aussie last off 0.49% at AUD 1.3693, and the Kiwi retreating just 0.01% to NZD 1.4908.