{"id":9675,"date":"2021-05-12T08:39:47","date_gmt":"2021-05-12T08:39:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/2021\/05\/12\/asian-shares-mostly-lower-in-cautious-trading\/"},"modified":"2021-05-12T08:39:47","modified_gmt":"2021-05-12T08:39:47","slug":"asian-shares-mostly-lower-in-cautious-trading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/2021\/05\/12\/asian-shares-mostly-lower-in-cautious-trading\/","title":{"rendered":"Asian Shares Mostly Lower In Cautious Trading"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An extended sell-off amid rising inflation expectations and valuation concerns saw Asian stocks hitting their lowest in seven weeks on Wednesday. A cautious undertone prevailed as investors awaited U.S. consumer inflation data due out later in the day for direction.<\/p>\n

Chinese shares rose as the U.S. agreed to remove Xiaomi from a blacklist that would have barred Americans from investing in the Chinese smartphone maker.<\/p>\n

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index climbed 20.91 points, or 0.6 percent, to 3,462.75, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced 217.23 points, or 0.8 percent, to 28,231.04.<\/p>\n

Japanese stocks fell sharply to extend losses from the previous session as investors fretted over the accelerating daily coronavirus<\/span> infection rates caused by highly contagious variants of the virus. According to the Health Ministry, the number of COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms in Japan rose to a record 1,176.<\/p>\n

The Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 461.08 points, or 1.6 percent, to 28,147.51, while the broader Topix ended 1.5 percent lower at 1,877.95.<\/p>\n

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group plunged 3.5 percent, while automaker Toyota Motor climbed 2.2 percent after more than doubling its fourth quarter net profit.<\/p>\n

Nissan Motor plummeted more than 10 percent. The company said it expects to break even this business<\/span> year, defying expectations for a return to profitability.<\/p>\n

Australian markets<\/span> fell for a second straight day despite the government unveiling a big spending budget to spur the country’s rebounding economy<\/span>.<\/p>\n

The benchmark S&P\/ASX 200 Index dropped 52.10 points, or 0.7 percent, to 7,044.90, while the broader All Ordinaries Index ended down 50.50 points, or 0.7 percent, at 7,281.10.<\/p>\n

Commonwealth Bank rose over 1 percent after the lender reported third quarter cash profits that doubled from last year to A$2.4 billion. The other three big banks ended down between 0.6 percent and 1.2 percent.<\/p>\n

Mining heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto posted modest losses, while smaller rival Fortescue Metals Group advanced 1.4 percent. Tech shares saw modest gains, with Xero rising 2.3 percent.<\/p>\n

Trading in shares of Carsales.Com was halted after the vehicle classifieds site confirmed it is raising $600 million to fund the purchase of a 49 percent stake in U.S. branded marketplace platform Trader Interactive.<\/p>\n

CSR surged 4.2 percent after the building materials firm reinstated a final dividend of 14.5 cents and said it will also pay a special 9.5-cent dividend.<\/p>\n

In economic news, the total number of building permits issued in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 17.4 percent sequentially in March, official data showed. That matched expectations following the 20.1 percent jump in February.<\/p>\n

Seoul stocks tumbled as foreign investors dumped local shares on growing worries over inflation and possibly earlier rate hikes. The benchmark Kospi slumped 47.77 points, or 1.5 percent, to 3,161.66.<\/p>\n

Chemical maker LG Chem led losses to end 5.3 percent lower and pharmaceutical firm Celltrion gave up 3 percent, while market heavyweight Samsung Electronics declined 1.5 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK Hynix lost 2.9 percent.<\/p>\n

Investors ignored data showing that unemployment in South Korea dropped to an eight-month low in April. The number of people employed also rose at the fastest pace in nearly seven years, suggesting that the economy is well on the road to recovery.<\/p>\n

New Zealand shares extended losses, with the benchmark NZX-50 index ending down 74.98 points, or 0.6 percent, at 12,564.21. Exporter Fisher & Paykel Healthcare dropped 1.5 percent, while A2 Milk shares rebounded to close 0.2 percent higher. Pushpay Holdings climbed 1.9 percent after releasing its annual results. <\/p>\n

Taiwan’s benchmark index fell more than 4 percent after reports that the country may raise the COVID-19 alert level in the coming days, which would lead to the closure of shops dealing in non-essential items.<\/p>\n

U.S. stocks ended lower overnight as positive data on job openings added to concerns over inflation. <\/p>\n

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged as much as 2.2 percent before ending 0.1 percent lower, while the Dow dropped 1.4 percent and the S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n