Asian markets settled mostly lower on Tuesday on persistent worries about coming interest rate hikes to tame stubbornly high inflation. Chinese shares gained on optimism over China’s economic recovery and ahead of a reading on the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) due on Wednesday. However, slight gains on Wall Street overnight limited further fall in Asian equities. Hong Kong shares slipped after data showed that the country’s exports plummeted nearly 37% in January, marking their worst drop in 70 years. Japanese shares settled flat as factory output posted its biggest fall in eight months in January due to declining overseas demand.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,279.61 | 21.58 | 0.66 |
Hang Seng | 19,785.94 | -157.57 | -0.80 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,843.24 | -11.54 | -0.17 |
KLSE Composite | 1,454.19 | -1.31 | -0.09 |
Nikkei 225 | 27,445.56 | 21.60 | 0.08 |
Straits Times | 3,262.63 | -0.61 | -0.02 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,412.85 | 10.21 | 0.42 |
Taiwan Weighted | -- | -- | -- |
