Asia report: Markets rise as China looks to ease trade tension
Markets in Asia finished higher on Thursday, led by a surge in positive sentiment in China, which was egged on by a solid finish on Wall Street overnight.
AUD/USD
$0.6533
23:03 26/04/24
GBP/NZD
NZD2.1025
23:53 26/04/24
Hang Seng
17,651.15
10:20 26/04/24
Nikkei 225
37,934.76
09:44 26/04/24
USD/JPY
¥158.3270
01:54 27/04/24
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 added 0.99% to 21,816.19, as the yen weakened 0.11% against the dollar, to last trade at JPY 113.42.
The broader Topix index was up 0.62% at 1,616.65 in Tokyo.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was 1.23% firmer at 2,634.05, as the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite advanced 1.11% to 1,360.92.
South Korea’s Kospi was 0.62% higher at 2,095.55, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong improved 1.29% to 26,524.35.
Sentiment was given a boost in the US overnight by reports that Beijing was looking to improve access by foreign firms to China’s economies, in what is being seen as a bid to release some of the tension in relations with Washington.
The plan, according to the Wall Street Journal, is to replace the ‘Made in China 2025’ programme with something more appealing to US lawmakers.
Made in China 2025, which has a stated goal of making the People’s Republic a world leader in emerging industries such as robotics and clean energy generation, has been a thorn in the side of trade negotiations with the US.
According to analysts, such a move would be a major catalyst to improved relations.
“In the scheme of things and were this to prove true, this is far more relevant than China agreeing to restart purchases of American soybeans, or even reducing the tariff on US car imports from 40% to 15%, as has been indicated in the last 24 hours,” noted National Australia Bank head of foreign exchange strategy Ray Attrill.
Oil prices were lower, with Brent crude last down 0.84% at $59.65, and West Texas Intermediate slipping 0.97% to $50.66 per barrel.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 managed gains of 0.14% to close at 5,661.60, with the telecoms sector keeping a lid on gains for the Sydney benchmark.
Hutchison Telecommunications shares were down 21.43% by end of trading, and TPG Telecom slid 16.67%, after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission expressed concerns about a planned merger between the two firms.
Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 was up 0.6% at 8,793.17, led higher by construction conglomerate Fletcher Building, which was ahead 4.5%.
The ailing firm was given a boost after Australian fund manager Perpetual upped its stake to 11%.
Markets were also expecting an announcement from Fletcher that it would sell Formica.
Both of the down under dollars were 0.15% stronger on the greenback, with the Aussie last at AUD 1.3829 and the Kiwi standing at NZD 1.4559.