On Thursday morning (18 Apr, 9:09 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in Asia Pacific traded mixed as the US markets fell last night, marking a fourth consecutive day loss for S&P 500 and NASDAQ. Meanwhile, investors kept their eyes on the announcement of Australia’s unemployment rate.
South Korea’s KOSPI rose by 1.49% to 2,622.68. Australia’s ASX 200 grew by 0.41% to 7,636.8, while Japan’s NIKKEI slid by 0.22% to 37,880.08.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC dropped by 0.08% to 3,068.8. Shenzhen’s SZI declined by 0.45% to 9,339.51, while Hong Kong’s HSI increased by 0.12% to 16,271.59.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets edged down on Wednesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) contracted by 0.12% to 37,753.31. NASDAQ slumped by 1.15% to 15,683.37, and S&P 500 dropped by 0.58% to 5,022.21. VIX decreased by 1.03% to 18.21.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Wednesday as the risk of an escalation of conflicts between Israel and Iran, potentially disrupting oil supplies, did not bother the market. Brent lost $2.73 or 3.03% to $87.29 per barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) decreased $2.67 or 3.13% to $82.69 a barrel.
This morning, Brent increased 15 cents or 0.17% to $87.44 a barrel, and WTI rose 4 cents or 0.05% to $82.73 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures slid by 0.25% to $2,382.4 per Troy ounce.
