BANGKOK — Asian stock indices showed an upward trend on Tuesday, buoyed by recent achievements on Wall Street, even as Chinese markets faced declines.
U.S. futures experienced slight gains, whereas oil prices fell by over $2 per barrel.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index rose by 1.3%, reaching 40,125.60, while South Korea’s Kospi posted a modest increase of 0.2% to 2,627.92.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw a 0.8% rise, closing at 8,321.40.
However, Chinese stocks continued to drop following a government report released late Monday indicating a significant decrease in export growth for September, highlighting ongoing economic weaknesses.
The Shanghai Composite index fell by 0.5% to 3,267.13, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index declined by 1.3% to 20,810.11.
Yeap Jun Rong from IG commented that investors are eagerly awaiting clearer signals regarding fiscal stimulus from the Chinese government; however, the lack of definitive commitments is causing hesitation in risk-taking among investors in Chinese stocks.
On the currency front, the dollar decreased to 149.70 Japanese yen from 149.83, while the euro fell to $1.0895 from $1.0911.
U.S. benchmark crude oil prices dropped by $2.25 to $71.58 per barrel, with Brent crude, the international benchmark, decreasing by $2.33 to $75.13 per barrel.
On Monday, Wall Street experienced another day of record highs.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.8%, finishing at 5,859.85, which marked its fifth consecutive winning week and set the stage for its longest winning streak this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5%, closing at 43,065.22, reflecting an upward movement of 201 points. The Nasdaq composite also saw an increase, rising by 0.9% to 18,502.69.
These gains occurred amidst relatively low trading activities in Europe, while the U.S. bond market was closed due to a holiday.
In addition to declining oil prices, copper and other commodity prices also fell, leading to a decrease in miner shares, such as Freeport-McMoRan, which experienced a 2.3% drop.
Boeing saw a 1.3% decline in its first trading day after the aerospace company disclosed that it anticipated reporting a cash burn of $1.3 billion for the recent quarter, resulting in a loss of $9.97 per share. Boeing is also planning to lay off 10% of its workforce in response to a labor strike affecting the production of its highly sought airline models.
Looking ahead, this week is expected to provide limited significant economic reports, aside from a Thursday update on U.S. retail sales. Therefore, attention will turn toward corporate earnings reports, which are expected to increase after major banks kicked off the reporting season last week.
Tuesday will see earnings announcements from Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson, and UnitedHealth Group, with United Airlines, Netflix, American Express, and Procter & Gamble reporting later in the week.
Analysts anticipate that S&P 500 companies will achieve an earnings per share increase of 4.1% for the latest quarter compared to the previous year, as projected by FactSet. If realized, this would mark the fifth consecutive quarter of growth.
The stock market has surged to new highs amid relief that interest rates are on a downward trend, following the Federal Reserve’s expanded focus on sustaining economic growth alongside battling high inflation.
Recent data indicating a stronger-than-expected U.S. economy has fueled optimism that the Fed might achieve a balanced outcome, managing to lower inflation to 2% without triggering a recession previously anticipated by many analysts.