Asia stocks inch down on global growth concerns; Nikkei down 0.45%
Published Jul 10, 2012 10:14PM ET
Investing.com - Asian stocks inched lower on Wednesday as investors sold equities on concerns the global economy is cooling and stocked up on safe-haven yen positions to await good news before investing in stocks.
During Asian trading on Wednesday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 0.63%, Australia's S&P/ASX200 was down 0.22%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was down 0.45%.
The past few trading sessions revealed joblessness remains a problem in the U.S. while imports into China are coming in much weaker than expected.
The U.S. added a net 80,000 nonfarm payrolls in June, below market forecasts for a gain of around 90,000.
Meanwhile in China, the nation’s trade surplus widened to a three-year high of USD31.7 billion in June from USD18.7 billion in the previous month.
The country reported that exports rose by 11.3% in June from a year earlier, down from 15.3% in May.
Imports, however, grew by 6.3%, well below expectations of 11.0% and far below 12.7% in the previous month.
Poor import figures out of China and lackluster jobs reports out of the U.S. sparked a selloff in Asian equities markets.
Markets shrugged off Japanese tertiary industry figures.
Japan's Tertiary Industry Index, which measures the change in the total value of services purchased by businesses, rose to a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in May, from -0.2% in April, whose figure was revised up from -0.3%.
Markets were forecasting a 0.2% reading.
Concerns that earnings in the U.S. may disappoint sent Asian stock prices falling as well.
In Hong Kong, top decliners included CCB, down 2.36%, ICBC, down 1.92%, and CHALCO, down 1.56%.
In Australia, top decliners included Alumina Limited, down 4.96%, Coalspur Mines, down 4.65%, and Macmahon Holdings, down 4.50%.
European stock futures indicated a mixed opening.
France's CAC 40 futures pointed to a gain of 0.16%, while Germany's DAX 30 futures signaled a loss of 0.01%. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the FTSE 100 futures indicated a gain of 0.06%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.08% while the S&P 500 futures were flat at 0.00%.
The U.S. is to release official data on its trade balance, its latest figures on crude oil stockpiles, and later, the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s most recent monetary policy meeting.
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Written By: Investing.com
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