On Tuesday morning (14 January, 9:18 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), indices in Asia Pacific trade mixed and were in line with a session on Wall Street that was marked by a surge in the Dow and a decline in the Nasdaq due to a shift in investor focus away from technology stocks.
Investors will be closely watching the performance of India’s rupee following its drop to an all-time low against the U.S. dollar. India recently released its December inflation data, showing a decrease for the second consecutive month compared to the previous year, slightly below projections at 5.22%, strengthening the argument for potential reductions in interest rates.
Meanwhile, Thailand is set to unveil its consumer confidence index for December later in the day.
Japan’s NIKKEI slumped by 1.97% to 38,417.64. South Korea’s KOSPI dipped by 0.15% to 2,485.85, while Australia’s ASX 200 grew by 0.23% to 8,210.5.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC rose by 0.91% to 3,189.66. Hong Kong’s HSI surged by 0.69% to 19,004.9, and Shenzhen’s SZI jumped by 1.21% to 9,914.58.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets were mixed on Monday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) added by 0.86% to 42,297.12. S&P 500 edged up by 0.16% to 5,836.22, while NASDAQ dropped by 0.38% to 19,088.1. VIX declined by 1.79% to 19.19.
As for commodities, oil prices settled higher on Monday due to anticipations of expanded U.S. sanctions on Russian oil prompting purchasers in India and China to search for alternative suppliers. Brent futures gained $1.25 or 1.6% to $81.01 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) increased $2.25 or 2.9% to $78.82 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures decreased 29 cents or 0.36% to $80.72 a barrel, and the WTI contracted 19 cents or 0.24% to $78.63 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures climbed 0.28% to $2,686.1 per Troy ounce.
