Most of the Asian markets ended in red on Friday, as investors digested a raft of regional economic data and looked ahead to next week's highly anticipated meeting between the leaders of US and China. Concern grew in the region after US President Donald Trump said that the meeting with China “will be a very difficult one in that we can no longer have massive trade deficits and job losses.” Earlier in the day, the Chinese market moved higher after official data showed activity in China's vast manufacturing sector expanded at a faster pace than expected in March with a PMI score of 51.8, beating forecasts for 51.7 and up from 51.6 in February. The Japanese market lost all the early gains and ended at their lowest levels in more than seven weeks as exporters lost ground despite a weaker yen and upbeat domestic data. Japan's core consumer price inflation rose for a second consecutive month in February.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,222.51 | 12.28 | 0.38 |
Hang Seng | 24,111.59 | -189.50 | -0.78 |
Jakarta Composite | 5,568.11 | -24.85 | -0.44 |
KLSE Composite | 1,740.09 | -9.16 | -0.52 |
Nikkei 225 | 18.909.26 | -153.96 | -0.81 |
Straits Times | 3,175.11 | 1.87 | 0.06 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,160.23 | -4.41 | -0.20 |
Taiwan Weighted | 9,811.52 | -36.63 | -0.37 |