Asian markets ended in red on Monday as worries about global trade and higher US interest rates lingered. A growing feud between the US and Saudi Arabia over the disappearance of a prominent Saudi journalist also weighed on investors' risk appetite. Chinese shares tumbled to extend last week's rout as traders remained on edge ahead of European Union summit, the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) September meeting minutes and a slew of domestic data, due this week. Further, Japanese shares hit eight-week lows, with automakers coming under heavy selling pressure after reports that the US is seeking currency chapters in trade talks with Japan that would contain a provision about currency manipulation. Investors also digested news that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will go ahead with an increase in the consumption tax to 10 percent from the current 8 percent in October 2019.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 2,568.09 | -38.82 | -1.51 |
Hang Seng | 25,445.06 | -356.43 | -1.40 |
Jakarta Composite | 5,727.26 | -29.23 | -0.51 |
KLSE Composite | 1,728.74 | -2.00 | -0.12 |
Nikkei 225 | 22,271.30 | -423.36 | -1.90 |
Straits Times | 3,045.97 | -23.20 | -0.76 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,145.12 | -16.73 | -0.78 |
Taiwan Weighted | 9,901.12 | -144.69 | -1.46 |
