On Wednesday morning (20 November, 9:27 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), most indices in Asia Pacific exhibited a downward trend, in the wake of a mixed performance in Wall Street amidst escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia. Traders in Asia also analyzed trade data from Japan and China’s interest rate decision.
In October, Japan’s exports surged by 3.1% year-on-year, exceeding expectations of economists surveyed by Reuters and marking a significant improvement from the 1.7% decline seen in September. Meanwhile, import growth outperformed projections at 0.4%, although it represented a decrease from the 2.1% growth witnessed in the previous month.
China’s central bank opted to maintain its key benchmark lending rates unchanged on Wednesday, as the government evaluated the impact of its current stimulus initiatives. The 1-year loan prime rate remained at 3.1%, while the 5-year LPR was steady at 3.6%. This decision aligned with forecasts provided by economists surveyed by Reuters.
Japan’s NIKKEI dropped by 0.38% to 38,268.03. Australia’s ASX 200 declined by 0.35% to 8,344.6, while South Korea’s KOSPI grew by 0.5% to 2,484.28.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC slid by 0.04% to 3,344.58. Hong Kong’s HSI fell by 0.09% to 19,645.57, while Shenzhen’s SZI increased by 0.05% to 10,749.47.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets edged up on Tuesday as NASDAQ added by 1.04% to 18,987.47. S&P 500 surged by 0.4% to 5,916.98, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) decreased by 0.28% to 43,268.94. VIX soared by 4.94% to 16.35.
As for commodities, oil prices moved slightly on Tuesday following Ukraine’s deployment of longer-range missiles against Russia. This action occurred subsequent to President Joe Biden’s approval for Ukraine to employ the missiles for targeted strikes in Russia, marking a significant shift from the prior stance of Washington. Brent futures climbed 1 cent or 0.01% to $73.31 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 23 cents or 0.33% to $69.39 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures lost 4 cents or 0.05% to $73.27 a barrel, and the WTI gained 14 cents or 0.2% to $69.53 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures expanded 0.51% to $2,644.5 per Troy ounce.
