Asian stocks mixed ahead of Fed rate decision
Interestingly, China Evergrande shares gained 4.8%; Hang Seng, Shanghai in red; Nikkei-225, S&P/ASX 200 edged up, while Bangkok’s SET remains unchanged; US futures and oil prices edged higher
Bangkok: Asian shares were mixed on Tuesday, with Hong Kong and Shanghai leading declines, ahead of a decision by the Federal Reserve this week on interest rates.
US futures and oil prices edged higher. Shares in property developer China Evergrande Group, the world’s most heavily indebted real estate company with more than $300 billion in liabilities, remained suspended from trading after a Hong Kong court ordered the company to be liquidated because it is insolvent. But shares in China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group gained 4.8 per cent as they resumed trading. Evergrande Property Services fell 1.3 per cent. Other property companies led the decline in Hong Kong, where the benchmark Hang Seng index sank 2 per cent to 15,764.13. Country Garden tumbled 5.7 per cent and Sunac China Holdings was down 4.8 per cent.
Technology companies also retreated, with food delivery company Meituan down 2.6 per cent and e-commerce giant Alibaba falling 1.8 per cent. The Shanghai Composite index gave up 0.6 per cent to 2,865.60. Chinese regulators have been moving to prop up the markets, among the world's worst performing so far this year amid worries about not only the troubled property industry but also slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy. “Scepticism persists regarding the equity plunge protection plan,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
“While measures akin to a band-aid on a broken leg may temporarily boost stock prices, they do little to stabilise earnings or foster growth.” Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index rose 0.4 per cent to 36,175.98 and the Kospi in South Korea edged 0.1 per cent higher, to 2,503.00. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.2 per cent to 7,591.00. Bangkok's SET was nearly unchanged. On Monday, US stocks gained as they kicked off a week where Wall Street's most influential stocks may show whether the huge expectations built up for them are justified. The S&P-500 gained 0.8 per cent to set another record at 4,927.93.
