SINGAPORE – Stocks in Asia-Pacific fell during Wednesday morning trading as an increase in coronavirus cases in countries like India weighs on the economic outlook and investor sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 1.7% in morning trading, while the Topix index fell 2%. Kospi in South Korea lost 1.11%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 1.42%. Mainland China stocks also traded in negative territory as Shanghai’s composite fell 0.31% while Shenzhen’s component fell 0.315%.
Shares in Australia also fell as the S & P / ASX 200 fell 1.3%. Retail sales in Australia are up 1.4% in March from February, according to preliminary data released Wednesday by the country’s Bureau of Statistics. That was higher than expected in a Reuters poll for a 1% gain.
MSCI’s widest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan was 0.94% lower.
Reopenings like airlines fell, with shares of Qantas Airways in Australia falling 2%, while Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings in Japan were down 0.89% and 1.71% respectively. In Hong Kong, shares of China Eastern Airlines fell 1.38% and Cathay Pacific fell 1.55%. Singapore Airlines stock also lost 0.59%.
The losses came after their counterparts tumbled overnight in the United States. Shares of United Airlines plummeted more than 8% after the company reported a fifth consecutive quarterly loss. CEO Scott Kirby said it is still unclear when international and business travel will recover.
Markets in India are closed on Wednesday due to a public holiday. The coronavirus situation in the country remains serious, with 259,170 new infections daily on Tuesday. The World Health Organization warned on Friday that the global Covid contamination rate is nearing its highest level ever.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 256.33 points to 33,821.30 while the S&P 500 fell 0.68% to 4,134.94. The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.92% to 13,786.27.
Currencies and oil
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against its competitors, was at 91,201 after falling above 91.6 earlier this week.
The Japanese yen traded at 107.96 per dollar, still stronger than levels above 109.2 versus last week’s dollar. The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.7728, lower than yesterday above $ 0.777.
Oil prices fell in the morning of trading hours in Asia, with the international benchmark for Brent crude oil futures falling 0.33% to $ 66.35 a barrel. US crude oil futures fell 0.46% to $ 62.38 a barrel.