Asian Markets Mixed as Data Shows China Growth Slowed

Thursday, October 19, 2017 3:35 am | 2 Minute Read

A currency trader walks by the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rates at the foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Asian markets were mixed on Thursday after Wall Street closed at record highs. Data showed that China’s quarterly growth slowed slightly but was in line with expectations.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.4 percent to 21,448.52, while South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.4 percent to 2,473.05. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.5 percent to 28,574.59 and the Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.5 percent to 3,364.72. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.1 percent to 5,896.10. Stocks in Taiwan and Singapore were higher but elsewhere in Southeast Asia, they were mixed.

China’s economy expanded at a 6.8 percent annual pace during the July-September quarter, relatively stable growth but slightly below the previous quarter’s 6.9 percent, government data showed. The latest result gives a boost to the ruling Communist Party that has been trying to steer the world’s second-largest economy to slower, more sustainable growth based on consumer spending rather than exports and investment.

Customs data show Japan’s trade surplus leaped nearly 38 percent in September from a year earlier on strong shipments of cars, car parts and machinery to China and the U.S. The upbeat report boosted share prices for manufacturers like Toyota Motor Corp. and Panasonic. However, analysts are forecasting that growth will slow in coming months.

U.S. stocks finished with modest gains on Wednesday, recording more milestones for Wall Street. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.1 percent to 2,561.26, a record high, while the Dow Jones industrial average closed at 23,157.60, up 0.7 percent. The Nasdaq composite index was flat at 6,624.22. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks gained 0.5 percent to 1,505.14.

Benchmark U.S. crude lost 6 cents to $52.20 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 15 cents to settle at $52.26 a barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, fell 4 cents to $58.11 per barrel in London. It gained 27 cents to close at $58.15 a barrel on Wednesday.

The dollar rose to 113.02 yen from 112.93 yen. The euro strengthened to $1.1813 from $1.1788.

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