Major stock indices in Asia are trading mixed today. Some indices are declining, including the Shanghai Composite, which is down by 0.33%, and the Shenzhen Composite, which shed 0.62%. Korea's KOSPI also lost 0.31%. Meanwhile, other indices of the region showed growth up to 1%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.03%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.16%, and Japan's Nikkei 225 went up by 0.43%.
On the one hand, Asian stocks are supported by the US stock market which posted gains yesterday on positive quarterly earnings reports.
Yet, investors are still worried about the global economic downturn that may come as a result of interest rate hikes implemented by central banks. Yesterday, the European Central Bank announced its decision to raise the rate by 50 basis points to 0.5% year-on-year from the previous level of 0% which has been left unchanged for the past 10 years.
The US Federal Reserve will meet next week to raise the rate for the fourth time in a row. Most experts predict a rise of 75 basis points although some of them think the Fed will lift the rate straight by 100 points.
China's indices remain under pressure due to a new coronavirus outbreak. Traders are worried that it may slow down the economic growth of the country.
Among companies trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, Xtep International Holdings Ltd. depreciated by 4.2%. This drop came after one of the company's main shareholders GroupSuccess Investments Ltd. announced it was planning to sell a part of its stake in the company.
Other companies managed to show growth. Thus, Sands China Ltd. rose by 2.4%, Haidilao International Holding Ltd. gained 1.4%, China Construction Bank Corp. was up by 1.2%, while China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd. appreciated by 1.1%.
Another factor to shape investors' sentiment is the inflation data from Japan. Consumer prices slowed down in June to 2.4% compared to 2.5% a month earlier. At the same time, the core consumer price index which excludes food prices rose by 2.2%, coming in line with the forecast.
According to the Bank of Japan's fresh outlook, core inflation will run at the level of 2.3% in 2022. The regulator decided to keep the key rate unchanged at -0.1%.
The shares of the Japanese company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. gained 11.9% thanks to a positive forecast for its net profit. The company is expected to earn 690 billion yen during this financial year, which is up from the previous forecast of 460 billion yen.
Following the trajectory of the main Korean index, the shares of other major companies of the country also slid. Thus, the value of Samsung Electronics Co. stock dropped by 0.65%, while Kia Corp. lost 2%.
Among the components of the Australian S&P/ASX 200 index, Rio Tinto Ltd. showed modest growth of 0.3%. Its competitor, BHP Group Ltd. saw a 0.1% decrease in the value of its stock.
The shares of Insurance Australia Group Ltd. depreciated by 1.4% after it was revealed that the company failed to meet the forecast on earnings results for this financial year.
