Major Asian Equities in Red on Disappointing China’s Inflation Data

By Investors Hub

Asian stocks closed mostly lower on Wednesday after bond yields jumped in the U.S. and inflation data from China painted a mixed picture.

Consumer prices in China rose an annual 1.8 percent in December, the National Bureau of Statistics said. That missed expectations for an increase of 1.9 percent but was up from 1.7 percent in November.

The bureau also said that producer prices jumped an annual 4.9 percent, exceeding forecasts for a gain of 4.8 percent but down from 5.8 percent in the previous month.

Japanese shares ended in the red as traders locked in some profits after recent strong gains. The Nikkei 225 Index slid 61.79 points or 0.3 percent to 23,788.20 after hitting a 26-year high in the previous session. However, the broader Topix Index closed 0.2 percent higher at 1,892.11.

Heavyweight Fast Retailing dropped 1.2 percent and chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron retreated 1.7 percent, while financials ended broadly higher.

Australian shares gave up early gains to end lower, dragged down by miners and property developers. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index dropped 39.10 points or 0.6 percent to 6,096.70, and the broader All Ordinaries Index ended down 35.60 points or 0.6 percent at 6,205.90.

Rising U.S. Treasury yields weighed on property stocks, with Goodman Group and GPT Group falling around 3 percent each. In the mining sector, Rio Tinto, Fortescue Metals Group, South32 and BlueScope Steel all fell around 1 percent.

Gold miner Newcrest lost 2.3 percent and Evolution shed 2 percent after gold prices declined overnight. AuMake International fell more than 12 percent after cancelling an A$20 million capital raising due to recent share price volatility.

Meanwhile, Chinese stocks bucked the downtrend. China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 8.24 points or 0.2 percent to extend gains for the ninth straight session, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up 62.31 points or 0.2 percent to 31,073.72.