HONG KONG (AP) – Asian stocks were mostly lower on Monday, with Chinese shares again leading the decline, despite promises by Beijing’s market regulator to crack down on fraud and protect retail investors.
Shenzhen’s main small market index fell 5.4% but then recovered quickly to trade 1.7% lower. The Shanghai Composite Index fell more than 2% before recovering the lost ground.
US futures fell and oil prices rose.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission announced on Sunday that it would direct more medium- and long-term funds into the market and strengthen enforcement of measures against crimes such as market manipulation and malicious short selling.
The move followed others in recent days, but appeared to have done little to reassure investors who have been pulling money from the market for months. Last week, Chinese stocks ended their worst week in five years.
Comments by former President Donald Trump that he could impose tariffs of more than 60% on imports of Chinese goods if re-elected also hurt market sentiment. In a further blow, a private sector survey on Monday reported that growth in China’s services sector slowed slightly in January, with the Purchasing Managers’ Index falling to 52.7 from 52.9 in December. Ta. A PMI above 50 indicates expansion compared to the previous month.
By mid-afternoon on Monday, the Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.2% at 2,725.54. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.6% to 15,630.63.
Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.6% to 36,390.31.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1% to 7,623.30. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.6% to 2,599.62.
Big Tech stocks again drove Wall Street to record levels on Friday, even as renewed concerns about the risk of an overheating economy sent most stocks lower.
The S&P 500 rose 1.1% to close at 4,958.61, driven by big gains in Metaplatform and Amazon. It’s been on a hot streak, rising in 13 of the past 14 weeks. Big tech stocks, Wall Street’s most influential, also pushed the Nasdaq Composite up 1.7%.
However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is less tech-heavy, rose modestly by 0.3% to $38.654.42. And the Nasdaq rose 1.7% to 15,628.95.
Stock markets felt pressure as bond market yields rose significantly after reports showed US employers hired more workers Last month’s sales exceeded economists’ expectations.
While this is great for workers and helps avoid the risk of a recession, it could also maintain some upward pressure on inflation and extend the period before the Fed starts cutting interest rates.
Hopes for such rate cuts, which could ease pressure on the economy and goose investment prices, are a key reason why U.S. stock markets have soared to record highs. Jerome Powell Fed Chairman He said earlier this week that rate cuts were unlikely to begin as quickly as traders had hoped.
The jobs report landed on Wall Street amid a flurry of earnings reports.
meta platformThe company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, soared 20.3% after it reported better-than-expected profits for its latest quarter and said it would start paying dividends to investors.
Amazon The company rose 7.9% after the company announced that its latest quarter’s profit and sales exceeded expectations.
Both are members of a small group of Big Tech stocks known as the Magnificent Seven, which are responsible for much of Wall Street’s record rally. The company’s strong earnings have made growth expectations very high, which it will need to meet to justify a significant increase in the stock price.
appleThe company, another member of the Magnificent Seven, fell 0.5% despite reporting better-than-expected profits.
Charter Communications fell 16.5%, the biggest loss in the S&P 500, after the company reported lower-than-expected profits for its latest quarter.
In other trading, benchmark U.S. crude oil rose 39 cents to $72.67 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard crude, rose 52 cents to $77.85 per barrel.
The dollar fell to 148.38 yen from 148.43 yen. The euro fell to $1.0779 from $1.0784.