Asian shares struggled to find their footing on Thursday as confidence was shaken after the U.S. government hit Chinese telecoms giant Huawei with severe sanctions, threatening to further strain Sino-U.S. trade ties.
Asian shares
“Chinese stocks are mounting a rebound as they had been oversold in recent sessions. Sentiment is also better as President Trump seems to be desiring a compromise,” said Kota Hirayama, senior emerging markets economist at SMBC Nikko Securities in Tokyo.
- E-mini futures for the S&P 500 were last 0.3% lower.
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.25%.
- Japan’s Nikkei lost 0.6%, while South Korean shares lost 1.1%.
- the Shanghai Composite Index last trading up 0.5%.
- Australian stocks advanced 0.5%
Currency
A slim majority of economists polled by Reuters expects the central bank to keep rates at a record low although calls for a rate cut have grown louder after disappointingly weak first-quarter inflation.
- The euro tacked on 0.1% to $1.1209.
- Against the yen, the dollar dipped a tenth of a percent to 109.47.
Commodities
In commodity markets, oil prices remained a relatively tight range.
- Brent crude rose 0.5% to $72.11 a barrel.
- U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fetched $62.34, also half a percent higher.
- Gold edged up to $1,296.9 per ounce.
Bonds
- The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield eased to 2.366%, near its 15-month low of 2.340% touched on March 28.
- The two-year notes yield hit a 15-month low of 2.139% on Wednesday and last stood at 2.159%.
