HONG KONG (AP) – European markets opened higher while Asian stocks were mostly lower yesterday, with Chinese markets declining as investors awaited a key briefing about an upcoming stimulus plan this weekend.
In early European trading, Germany’s DAX added 0.1 per cent to 19,223.88 and France’s CAC 40 was up 0.1 per cent at 7,551.77. In London, the FTSE 100 edged up less than 0.1 per cent to 8,240.83.
The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average both fell by 0.1 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 closed up 0.6 per cent at 39,605.80. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.1 per cent to 8,214.50.
Chinese stocks fell. The Shanghai Composite lost 2.6 per cent to 3,217.74, and the CSI 300 Index, which tracks the top 300 stocks traded in the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets, gave up 2.7 per cent.
Hong Kong markets were closed yesterday for a public holiday. On Tuesday, its index dropped more than nine per cent, its worst loss since the 2008 global financial crisis.
All market attention was on a briefing that China’s Finance Ministry has scheduled for today to unveil long-anticipated fiscal stimulus plans.
“The consensus is for a CNY2 trillion package – not as large as some had hoped (CNY5 to 10 trillion), but the market reaction on Monday will depend more on the timing and the specific targets for the extra spending,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
Earlier this week, information about economic stimulus plans from Beijing officials disappointed the markets, as many had hoped that the new fiscal policies would follow the steps of previous announcements in late September aimed at reviving the struggling property market and boosting economic growth.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25 per cent yesterday, signalling a shift to an easing cycle intended to stimulate economic growth. It was the Bank of Korea’s first rate cut since 2020 and comes after a contraction in gross domestic product in the second quarter, along with an inflation rate in September that fell below the central bank’s target of two per cent.
The Kospi in Seoul edged 0.1 per cent lower to 2,596.91.
On Thursday, United States (US) stocks edged back from earlier records after reports showed inflation was a touch higher last month than expected and more workers filed for unemployment benefits last week.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.2 per cent to 5,780.05, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.1 per cent to 42,454.12 after setting an all-time high the day before. The Nasdaq composite edged down by 0.1 per cent to 18,282.05.
