Asian stocks were poised for slight declines early on Thursday, taking cues from the losses seen on Wall Street overnight as financial and technology stocks weighed on U.S. markets.
Futures pointed to lower opens for both Japan and Australia on Thursday: Nikkei futures traded in Chicago were 0.32 percent lower compared to the index’s previous close. Australia SPI futures, meanwhile, last stood at 0.18 percent down.
Markets in Vietnam will be closed on Thursday.
Regional markets will be tracking losses seen stateside after U.S. markets closed lower on Wednesday, with drops in the financials and technology sectors dragging major indexes there lower.
The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.58 percent, or 165.52 points, to close at 24,117.59 and the S&P 500 lost 0.86 percent to finish at 2,699.63. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite underperformed, falling 1.54 percent to end at 7,445.09.
Earlier in the day, the Dow had risen almost 286 points after U.S. plans to target foreign investment turned out less restrictive than initially thought, although markets lost steam throughout the session. Stocks had gained on news that the U.S. government will use the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States review process to address concerns over foreign acquisitions of U.S. technologies.
The development is seen as softer than plans floated earlier that would have targeted China more specifically.
Still, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC on Wednesday that the U.S. will be able to block joint ventures if technology transfer is involved. Meanwhile, White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow said the Trump administration’s stance on China should not be regarded as a softened one.
On the energy front, U.S. crude futures jumped 3.16 percent to settle at $72.76 per barrel and Brent crude futures gained 1.7 percent to settle at $77.62. The surge in prices came amid concerns over supply: U.S. crude stockpiles dropped by almost 10 million barrels last week, which was a larger-than-expected fall, while supply disruptions in Canada and Libya remained in focus.
In currencies, the dollar firmed overnight as investors digested U.S. trade policy developments. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, last stood at 95.268. The greenback also strengthened against the yen to trade at 110.25 at 7:16 a.m. HK/SIN.
Here’s the economic calendar for Thursday (all times in HK/SIN):
- 7:50 a.m.: Japan retail sales
- Indonesia’s central bank begins a two-day meeting on Thursday
