Asian market indices are exhibiting a mixed trend in early deals on Thursday after US stocks reversed early losses and finished higher as investors appraised the Federal Reserve's signal that it is not in a hurry to raise interest rates. The Japanese market is extending losses from the previous session on a firmer safe-haven yen more than offset the modest gains on Wall Street. Renewed concerns about US-China trade talks weighed on investors’ sentiments after US President Donald Trump said that the current structure used in trade talks was ‘too hard to get done’. Among the other Asian markets, Shanghai, South Korea and Malaysia are also lower. Bucking the trend, Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Taiwan are higher.
Hang Seng gained 21.33 points or 0.07% to 30,686.97, Jakarta Composite added 121.84 points or 2.1% to 5,913.84, Straits Times increased 13.14 points or 0.38% to 3,509.41, and Taiwan Weighted up by 38.54 points or 0.35% to 10,924.72
On the flip side, Nikkei 225 declined 269.9 points or 1.19% to 22,419.84, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI dropped 19.71 points or 1.09% to 1,784.54, KOSPI Index slipped 8.32 points or 0.34% to 2,463.59, and Shanghai Composite down by 1.14 points or 0.04% to 3,167.83.
