On Wednesday morning (5 March, 9:32 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in Asia Pacific traded mixed as investors analyzed China’s economic growth and inflation targets, while concerns over U.S. tariffs and increasing trade tensions worldwide dampened investor sentiment.
Traders are closely monitoring China’s annual parliamentary gathering known as the “Two Sessions,” which began on Wednesday with the convening of the country’s top legislature, the National People’s Congress.
The world’s second largest economy announced a GDP growth target of approximately 5% for 2025, alongside a revised inflation target of around 2%.
In Australia, the country’s fourth-quarter economic growth outperformed expectations, expanding by 1.3% year over year, surpassing the 1.2% forecast by a Reuters poll.
The tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on goods from Mexico and Canada, totaling 25%, came into force on Tuesday. Additionally, the president also enforced an extra 10% tariff on Chinese goods, raising the total new tariffs on China to 20%.
Japan’s NIKKEI climbed by 0.06% to 37,352.29. South Korea’s KOSPI rose by 0.41% to 2,539.21, while Australia’s ASX 200 slumped by 1.08% to 8,109.5.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC dipped by 0.13% to 3,320.05. Shenzhen’s SZI decreased by 0.31% to 10,646.27, while Hong Kong’s HSI jumped by 1.33% to 23,246.45.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets edged down on Tuesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) lost 1.55% to 42,520.99. NASDAQ dropped by 0.35% to 18,285.16, and S&P 500 plummeted by 1.22% to 5,778.15. VIX added 3.2% to 23.51.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Tuesday following news of OPEC+ intentions to move forward with output boosts in April. The market also faced additional downward pressure from U.S. tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China, along with Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs. Brent futures declined 58 cents or 0.8% to $71.04 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) slid 11 cents or 0.2% to $68.26 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures diminished 24 cents or 0.34% to $70.8 a barrel, and the WTI shrank 51 cents or 0.75% to $67.75 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures surged 0.08% to $2,922.8 per Troy ounce.
