Asia Mostly Gains - InvestingChannel

Asia Mostly Gains

Stocks in Asia Pacific mostly edged higher on Wednesday, as Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese tech juggernaut Tencent slipped from record highs seen earlier in the day.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 docked 14.73 points, or 0.1%, to 22,534.22.

The Japanese yen traded at 106.51 per U.S. dollar after strengthening sharply from levels above 107 yesterday.

The moves regionally came as the coronavirus situation stateside continues to be watched, with White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci warning Tuesday that parts of the U.S. are beginning to see a “disturbing surge” of COVID-19 cases.

More than two million people in the U.S. have been infected with the coronavirus so far, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan said: “It is still unclear when the spread of COVID-19 will subside on a global basis, as the spread is continuing in emerging economies in particular. It seems inevitable that the negative impact on the global economy, including Japan, will become prolonged without effective vaccines and medicines.”

The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 125.76 points, or 0.5%, to 24,781.58, as Tencent’s stock slipped 1.3% on the day after earlier touching a new record high.

Korean stocks moved higher, with shares of index heavyweight Samsung Electronics better by 2.9% and chipmaker SK Hynix surging 2.3%.

The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6913 after seeing an earlier low of $0.6899.

In other markets

In Shanghai, the CSI 300 gained 17.2 points, or 0.4%, to 4,138.99.

In Korea, the Kospi gained 30.27 points, or 1.4%, to 2,161.51

In Taiwan, the Taiex index added 48.31 points, or 0.4%, to 11,660.67

In Singapore, the Straits Times Index moved backward 6.3 points, or 0.2%, to 2,628.62

In New Zealand, the NZX 50 shot ahead 126.83 points, or 1.1%, to 11,259.41

In Australia, the ASX 200 tallied 11.04 points, or 0.2%, to 5,965.75.