Asian equity markets ended mostly in red on Thursday after Wall Street experienced its first loss-making session this year overnight, hit by reports that China may slow or halt purchases of US Treasuries and that President Donald Trump may pull the US out of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang reportedly said the economy expanded around 6.9 percent in 2017. The economic situation is ‘better than expected’, Li said in a forum in Cambodia. The National Bureau of Statistics is scheduled to issue annual GDP data on January 18. Japanese shares ended lower, hit by declines in automakers and electronic component makers as the strong yen soured investors’ appetite. Meanwhile, China stocks were little changed, with the benchmark index up for a 10th successive session even as investors took profit in consumer and energy firms after a recent robust rally.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,425.35 | 3.51 | 0.10 |
Hang Seng | 31,120.39 | 46.67 | 0.15 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,386.34 | 15.17 | 0.24 |
KLSE Composite | 1,816.88 | -6.04 | -0.33 |
Nikkei 225 | 23,710.43 | -77.77 | -0.33 |
Straits Times | 3,512.68 | -7.77 | -0.22 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,487.91 | -11.84 | -0.47 |
Taiwan Weighted | 10,810.06 | -21.03 | -0.19 |