Asian stocks were poised to slip early on Wednesday despite slim gains seen on Wall Street as a jump in oil prices and trade-related headlines took center stage.
Futures pointed to slightly lower opens for both Japan and Australia, with Nikkei futures traded in Chicago lower by 0.17 percent compared to the benchmark’s Tuesday close. Over in Australia, SPI futures were down 0.26 percent at the end of the last session.
Stocks stateside closed higher on Tuesday after taking a hit in the prior session amid an ongoing trade dispute with China, with the move higher in energy shares contributing to overnight gains. The Dow Jones industrial average closed higher by 0.12 percent, or 30.31 points, at 24,283.11, the S&P 500 advanced 0.22 percent to 2,723.06 and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.39 percent to end at 7,561.63.
Energy shares rose after the U.S. State Department said companies purchasing Iranian oil would be subject to U.S. sanctions if they did not completely slash those imports by November.
Oil prices jumped on the back of that news: U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures advanced $2.45 to settle at $70.53 per barrel, crossing the $70 level for the first time in two months, and Brent crude futures rose $1.58 to settle at $76.31.
Wall Street had slumped on Monday amid anticipation of further measures from the Trump administration against China, although messages from the White House have been conflicting.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Monday that a Wall Street Journal report on restrictions on Chinese investment in U.S. technology was “fake news,” but added that those measures would apply to “all countries” instead of China alone. Despite that, White House economic advisor Peter Navarro told CNBC that there were “no plans” to curb foreign investments.
Uncertainties over trade policy, as well as an escalation in rhetoric in the U.S. trade spat with China in recent weeks, have weighed on market sentiment in Asian markets. On Tuesday, both the Shanghai composite and the smaller Shenzhen composite finished the session in bear market territory, meaning they’ve declined more than 20 percent from their 52-week highs.
In currencies, the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, ended the Tuesday session firmer at 94.659, with trade tensions seen as contributing to near-term strength in the dollar. Against the yen, the dollar recovered to trade at 110.04 at 7:09 a.m. HK/SIN.
The economic calendar for Wednesday is fairly light on data (all times in HK/SIN):
- 9:30 a.m.: China industrial profits
- 5:00 p.m.: Indonesia car sales
