SINGAPORE — Stocks in Asia-Pacific fell in Wednesday trade as a surge in coronavirus cases in countries like India weighs on the economic outlook and investor sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 dropped 1.96% while the Topix index slipped 1.85%. South Korea’s Kospi shed 1.52%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 1.63%. Mainland Chinese stocks rose by the afternoon as the Shanghai composite gained 0.15% while the Shenzhen component advanced 0.293%.
Shares in Australia also declined as the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.7%. Australia’s retail sales rose 1.4% in March from February, according to preliminary data released Wednesday by the country’s Bureau of Statistics. That was higher than expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1% gain.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.06%.
Reopening plays like airlines fell in Wednesday trade, with shares of Qantas Airways in Australia dropping 1.7% while Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings in Japan declined 0.14% and 1.45%, respectively. In Hong Kong, shares of China Eastern Airlines fell 2.2% and Cathay Pacific slipped 1.97%. Singapore Airlines’ stock also shed 1.57%.
The losses came after their counterparts tumbled overnight stateside. United Airlines shares plummeted more than 8% after the company reported a fifth consecutive quarterly loss. CEO Scott Kirby said it is still unclear when international and business travel will recover.
Markets in India are closed on Wednesday for a holiday. The coronavirus situation in the country remains severe, with 259,170 new daily infections registered on Tuesday. The World Health Organization warned Friday that global Covid infection rate is approaching its highest level ever.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 256.33 points to 33,821.30 while the S&P 500 declined 0.68% to 4,134.94. The Nasdaq Composite shed 0.92% to 13,786.27.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against its peers, was at 91.245 following a drop from above 91.6 earlier this week.
The Japanese yen traded at 108.09 per dollar, still stronger than levels above 109.2 against the greenback seen last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7709, lower than levels above $0.777 seen yesterday.
Oil prices slipped in the afternoon of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures down 0.71% to $66.10 per barrel. U.S. crude futures slipped 0.81% to $62.16 per barrel.
Source: CNBC