Asian Shares Mostly Higher In Cautious Trading

Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Tuesday despite a sell-off in bitcoin and fears about a repeat of the yen carry trade unwinding.

The dollar index lingered around two-month lows, while gold prices eased after a rebound in U.S. Treasury yields.

Oil held an overnight gain as traders watched for U.S. President Donald Trump’s next steps on Venezuela and assessed the fallout from damage to a key Black Sea terminal.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.4 percent to 3,897.71 as investors awaited readouts from the annual agenda-setting Central Economic Work Conference and the December Politburo meeting.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up by 0.2 percent to 26,095.95, paring a gain of as much as 0.9 percent.

China Vanke bonds saw a sharp fall today on news the distressed builder is seeking a one-year delay to pay a two billion yuan note originally due on December 15.

Japanese markets finished marginally higher after an auction of 10-year Japanese bonds saw strong demand and a measure of consumer confidence reached its highest level in 19 months.

The yield on 10-year government bonds reached a 17-year high of 1.88 percent today, fueled by speculation of an imminent interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan.

Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing topped the gainers list to end 1.8 percent higher while technology investor SoftBank Group plunged 5.2 percent.

Seoul stocks rose sharply, with automakers rallying after U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed that the general tariff rate on imports from South Korea, including on autos, would drop to 15 percent.

The Kospi jumped 1.9 percent to 3,994.93. Hyundai Motor shares spiked 4.5 percent and Kia Corp. surged 4.2 percent.

Australian markets eked out modest gains as higher copper and iron ore prices boosted mining stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up by 0.2 percent to 8,579.70, while the broader All Ordinaries Index settled 0.1 percent higher at 8,877.50.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index closed up 0.4 percent at 13,502.77, recouping losses from the previous session.

U.S. stocks ended firmly in the red overnight after closing higher for five consecutive sessions.

Risk aversion spread across markets as Treasury yields surged following weakness in Japanese and European government bonds.

Weak U.S. manufacturing data and a sell-off in cryptocurrencies also weighed on markets. The Dow slid 0.9 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 dropped half a percent.

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