Asia stocks lower after Wall Street gains on recovery hopes

Asia stocks lower after Wall Street gains on recovery hopes

SeattlePI.com

Published

BEIJING (AP) — Major Asian stock markets declined Wednesday after Wall Street gained on hopes for a global economic recovery and Japan's exports sank.

Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul retreated.

Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index rose for a third day, gaining 1.9% on Tuesday after U.S. retail spending was stronger than expected.

Also Tuesday, the Federal Reserve promised to keep its policy ultra-loose to support business activity.

Global stock markets have regained most of this year's losses as investors look ahead to a rebound from the coronavirus pandemic despite rising infections in the United States, Brazil and some other major countries.

Analysts warn the gains might be too big and too fast to be justified by the uncertain economic outlook.

U.S. retail figures showing an 18% gain over the previous month are encouraging but still $50 billion below what might have been expected without the coronavirus, said Rob Carnell of ING in a report.

“We don’t imagine markets will share this nuanced view.” said Carnell. “They will likely make the most of any good news and continue to be dismissive of any bad news.”

The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.1% to 2,929.62 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo retreated 0.6% to 22,455.76. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 0.3% to 24,274.01.

In Seoul, the Kospi shed 0.3% to 2,131.12 and India's Sensex opened down 0.4% at 33,474.57.

Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 5,967.60. New Zealand advanced while Singapore declined.

Adding to the mixed picture, Japan's government reported May exports fell 28.3% from a year earlier in their biggest decline since the 2008 global crisis.

May might mark the low point for Japanese exporters as their major foreign customers begin to emerge from lockdowns, said...

Full Article