Asian markets ended mostly in red as traders remained worried amid signs of growing deflationary pressures in China. Traders also reacted cautiously to a mixed bag of corporate earnings from Japan. Chinese benchmarks edged lower by over quarter a percent after a measure of China's consumer price inflation reached its lowest level in more than two years in April and factory gate deflation deepened, raising fresh worries about weak demand in the country. The country’s consumer price inflation rose an annual 0.1 percent in April, marking the lowest rate since February 2021. Producer prices declined 3.6 percent from a year earlier, marking the fastest rate since May 2020. Meanwhile, Japanese Nikkei ended little changed as a standoff in Washington over raising the U.S. debt ceiling overshadowed a meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in the port city of Niigata. The talks are in preparation for a G-7 summit in Hiroshima.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,309.55 | -9.60 | -0.29 |
Hang Seng | 19,743.79 | -18.41 | -0.09 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,755.94 | -55.97 | -0.83 |
KLSE Composite | 1,425.18 | -0.50 | -0.04 |
Nikkei 225 | 29,126.72 | 4.54 | 0.02 |
Straits Times | 3,229.55 | -12.74 | -0.39 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,491.00 | -5.51 | -0.22 |
Taiwan Weighted | 15,514.64 | -127.12 | -0.82 |
