It’s been a brutal two weeks for global equities, but for those invested in Asia it’s been even worse.
More than three-fourths of the $2.1 trillion lost in stock values worldwide came from the region. China bore the brunt, with the selloff erasing $746 billion as the Shanghai Composite Index came close to entering a bear market, Bloomberg reported.
While some analysts say dumping Chinese shares is a mistake, strategists from Goldman Sachs Group Inc to Morgan Stanley slashed forecasts for Asian markets this week. The Philippine benchmark equity index joined Vietnam’s into a bear market, and gauges of Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia are down more than 10% from their highs.
Indian equities were the only ones in Asia adding value in the two weeks through June 21. Minutes from the recent RBI policy meeting showed the central bank was less hawkish than some market participants had expected.
Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE’s Nifty 50 declined on Friday as selling pressure in global equity markets as trade war tensions between US and China escalated, threatening growth outlook for global economy.
Oil prices rose by more than 1% amid uncertainty over whether Opec would manage to agree a production increase at a meeting beginning Friday in Vienna.
Markets End Mixed
Major Asian markets closed mixed on Friday, following losses seen on Wall Street and amid investor concerns about the trade dispute between the US and China, CNBC reported.
Japan led losses in Asia: The benchmark Nikkei 225 slid 0.78%, or 176.21 points, to close at 22,516.83, but was off its intraday low. Losses were seen across most sectors, with automaker stocks down 1.43% and among the day’s worst-performing sectors. Early declines in South Korea reversed, with the Kospi finishing up 0.83% at 2,357.22.
Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 edged lower by 0.11% to close at 6,225.20 in choppy trade. Heavily weighted financials rose, but those gains were offset by declines in most other sectors. Telecommunications stocks fell as Telstra declined for the third straight day.
Greater China markets were in positive territory. On the mainland, the Shanghai composite rose 0.49% to close at 2,889.95. The smaller Shenzhen composite advanced 1.21%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index, meanwhile, edged higher by 0.3%. HK/SIN, with stocks in the utilities and services sectors leading broad-based gains on the index before the market close.
MSCI’s broad index of shares in Asia Pacific excluding Japan firmed through the day, last trading higher by 0.5% in afternoon trade.
That came after stocks stateside closed lower in the last session, with trade tensions between Washington and Beijing continuing to weigh on investor sentiment. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.8%, or 196.10 points, to close at 24,461.70 and mark the index’s eighth straight day of losses.
For the week, markets in Asia remained under pressure after taking a hit earlier this week on trade-related fears. Even with Friday’s gains, China’s benchmark Shanghai composite finished the week down more than 4% after plunging on Tuesday. The Shenzhen composite was down more than 6% for the week.
