KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.7 per cent to 19,275.44 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was up 0.5 per cent to 22,936.98. China’s Shanghai Composite Index added 0.1 per cent to 3,122.87. But South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.5 per cent to 2,076.08 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slumped 1 per cent to 5,711.30. Stocks in Singapore were higher but in Indonesia and the Philippines, markets were lower.
ANALYST’S TAKE: “A correction may have been due following the exuberance of the market reaction to the election of Trump,” said Alex Furber, a sales trader at CMC Markets. “Uncertainty lies ahead and market participants will want to see how the new administration takes shape.”
CHINA TRADE: Customs data showed that Chinese exports sank 6.1 per cent in December from a year earlier. In November, China’s exports eked out a 0.1 per cent expansion after shrinking for nine straight months. Imports rose 3.1 per cent from a year earlier.
WALL STREET: U.S. stock markets finished moderately lower. The Dow Jones industrial average slid 63.28 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 19,891. The average had briefly been down more than 183 points. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 4.88 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 2,270.44. The Nasdaq composite fell 16.16 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 5,547.49.
OIL: Benchmark crude oil rose 10 cents at $53.11 per barrel in New York. The contract gained 76 cents, or 1.5 per cent, to close at $53.01 a barrel on Thursday. Brent crude, which is used to price oil sold internationally, gained 8 cents to $56.09 a barrel in London.
CURRENCIES: The dollar strengthened to 115.07 yen from 114.86 yen while the euro declined to $1.0608 from $1.0611.