Asian market indices are exhibiting a mixed trend in early deals on Friday amid cautious trade after US President Donald Trump cancelled the planned historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and accused North Korea of displaying ‘tremendous anger and open hostility’. Lingering worries about trade wars also weighed on investors’ sentiments. However, some of the markets in the region pared earlier losses after North Korea said it is open to talks with the US despite Trump's cancellation of the summit. Crude oil further slipped in Asian trades after falling overnight. Meanwhile, Japanese stocks were slightly higher, supported by defence-related companies after US President Donald Trump canceled a summit with North Korea, although the return of geopolitical tensions kept wider investors’ sentiments subdued. Among the other Asian markets, Shanghai, Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong are lower. Bucking the trend, Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan are in negative territory.
Nikkei 225 gained 44.84 points or 0.2% to 22,481.85, Jakarta Composite added 33.62 points or 0.57% to 5,980.16, Taiwan Weighted increased 27.91 points or 0.26% to 10,964.84, and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI up by 18.02 points or 1.01% to 1,793.68.
On the flip side, Hang Seng dropped 79.29 points or 0.26% to 30,681.12, KOSPI Index dipped 3.6 points or 0.15% to 2,462.41, Shanghai Composite slipped 2.31 points or 0.07% to 3,152.35, and Straits Times down by 0.86 points or 0.02% to 3,528.06.
