Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

Shares in Asia weaker with focus turning to U.S. jobs data

Published 05/03/2016, 11:28 PM
Updated 05/03/2016, 11:29 PM
Asian shares ease

Asian shares ease

Investing.com - ASian shares fell on Wednesday with Tokyo shut for a holiday and investors looking ahead to U.S. jobs data at the end of the week for direction.

The S&P/ASX 200 eased 1.13%.The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.30%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was last down 1.06%.

The yuan fell against the dollar on Wednesday after the People's Bank of China set the fixing weaker for the first time in three days at 6.4943, compared with 6.4565.

Overnight, U.S. stocks pared early losses on Tuesday but still closed broadly lower, as soft manufacturing data in China and a surprise rate cut from the Australian central bank weighed on global equities, offsetting gains from a rally in Apple shares (NASDAQ:AAPL).

In overnight trading, the Caixin Media Co. reported that China's factory activity in April fell by 0.3 to 49.4, marking the 14th straight month that its manufacturing index has remained in contraction territory. It came days after data from China's National Bureau of Statistics reported similar weakness in the factory sector after its official manufacturing PMI fell by 0.1 on the month to 50.1.

Investors also reacted to a 25 basis point cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) on Tuesday to 1.75%, the lowest on record. The latest easing measure from a top central bank intensified concerns from investors that a global economic slowdown could be on the verge of resurfacing.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 140.25 or 0.78% to 17,750.91, while the S&P 500 Composite index dropped 18.06 or 0.87% to 2,063.37, erasing all of the gains from the opening session of the month. The NASDAQ Composite index, meanwhile, fell 54.37 or 1.13% to 4,763.22, as semiconductor stocks weighed. On the S&P 500, all 10 sectors closed in the red as stocks in the Basic Materials and Energy sectors lagged. In total, four sectors dropped by at least 1% on the day.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.