Asian Markets Track Wall Street Lower

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Tuesday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, as concerns about a re-escalation of the military conflict in the Middle East and the related spike in crude oil prices added to worries about global inflation and interest rates. US President Donald Trump threatened to hit Iran "hard" after the two foes traded fire for the first time in over a month. Asian markets closed mixed on Monday.

The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Tuesday, extending the losses in the previous session, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling to near the 9,050 mark, with weakness in technology and financial stocks partially offset by gains in gold miners and energy stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 23.90 points or 0.26 percent to 9,052.10, after hitting a low of 9,023.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 28.30 points or 0.31 percent to 9,243.10. Australian stocks closed modestly lower on Monday.

Among the major miners, Rio Tinto, Fortescue and BHP Group are edging up 0.2 percent each, while Mineral Resources is edging down 0.3 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Beach energy, Origin Energy, Santos and Woodside Energy are gaining almost 1 percent each.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 2 percent and Xero is edging down 0.2 percent, while WiseTech Global, Appen and Zip are down more than 1 percent each.

Gold miners are mostly higher. Evolution Mining is edging up 0.2 percent, Genesis Minerals is advancing almost 2 percent, Resolute Mining is advancing more than 4 percent and Northern Star Resources is gaining almost 1 percent, while Newmont is losing almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, ANZ Banking is edging up 0.2 percent, while National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are edging down 0.1 to 0.4 percent each.

In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Australia continued to expand at a steady pace, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Tuesday with a manufacturing PMI score of 52.0, the highest level since January. That was unchanged from the July reading and it remains above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Meanwhile, Australia posted a current account deficit of A$27.2 billion in the second quarter of 2026, the Australian Bureau of Statistics or ABS said on Tuesday. That beat forecasts for a shortfall of A$29.7 billion following the upwardly revised A$25.4 billion deficit in the three months prior (originally a deficit of A$27.1 billion).

The capital and financial account surplus was A$5.3 billion, a decrease of A$11.3 billion on the Q1 surplus. Australia's net international investment liability position was A$638.9 billion in Q2, a decrease of A$122.8 billion on the revised Q1 position of A$761.7 billion.

The ABS also said the total number of building permits issued in Australia was down a seasonally adjusted 3.6 percent on month in July, coming in at 17,687. That beat expectations for a decline of 4.8 percent following the 7.2 percent gain in June. The value of total building work approved rose 3.3 percent to A$21.19 billion, after a 1.5 percent June fall. On a yearly basis, approvals rose 9.0 percent - slowing from 28.8 percent in the previous month.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.717 on Tuesday.

The Japanese stock market is trading modestly lower on Tuesday, extending the slight losses in the previous session, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, with the Nikkei 225 falling to near the 66,050 level, with weakness in index heavyweights and technology stocks partially offset by gains in automakers and financial stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 66050.33, down 261.60 points or 0.39 percent, after hitting a low of 65,576.61 earlier. Japanese shares ended slightly lower on Monday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging down 0.3 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is declining almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining almost 2 percent and Toyota is adding more than 2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest and Screen Holdings are losing more than 2 percent each, while Tokyo Electron is declining almost 3 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial are edging up 0.3 to 0.4 percent each.

The major exporters are mostly lower. Mitsubishi Electric and Sony are edging down 0.2 percent each, while Panasonic is losing almost 1 percent. Canon is gaining almost 1 percent

Among the other major losers, Sumco is tumbling almost 6 percent, while Furukawa Electric, Lasertec and Fujikura are declining almost 4 percent each. Renesas Electronics is losing more than 3 percent and Toto is down almost 3 percent.

Conversely, JFE Holdings is surging almost 5 percent, while Nippon Steel, Sumitomo Chemical and Tokyo Electric Power are advancing more than 4 percent each. Kansai Electric Power and Mitsubishi Materials are gaining almost 4 percent each, while ENEOS Holdings is adding more than 3 percent, while Nissan Motor, Chubu Electric Power, Alps Alpine and Mitsubishi Chemical Group are up almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand in August, and at a faster rate, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Tuesday with a manufacturing PMI score of 54.9. That's up from 54.5 in July, and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. This marks the eighth consecutive month of expansion in factory activity.

Meanwhile, Japanese companies' spending on plant and equipment rose 1.6 percent on year in the second quarter of 2026, rebounding from a flat reading in the prior period and comfortably exceeding market expectations of 0.2 percent. In contrast, manufacturing investment remained weak, falling 3.7 percent, after a 0.4 percent decline in the first quarter.

Overall, the data suggest corporate investment gained momentum in the second quarter, although manufacturing remained constrained by softer capital spending in several key industries.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 159 yen-range on Tuesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Malaysia and Hong Kong are down 1.3 and 1.1 percent, respectively. New Zealand, Singapore and South Korea are lower by between 0.2 and 0.9 percent each. Taiwan and Indonesia are up 1.3 and 0.6 percent, respectively. China is relatively flat.

On Wall Street, stocks moved mostly lower during trading on Monday, extending the pullback seen over the course of last Friday's session. The major averages regained some ground in the latter part of the trading day but still closed in negative territory.

The Dow slid 374.09 points or 0.7 percent to 53,185.90, while the S&P 500 fell 25.62 points or 0.3 percent to 7,686.14. The tech-heavy Nasdaq posted a more modest loss, edging down 31.53 points or 0.1 percent to 26,370.89.

The major European markets also moved mostly lower on the day, with the U.K. markets closed for a bank holiday. While the German DAX Index slumped 1.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index slid 0.8 percent.

Crude oil prices jumped on Monday as the U.S. recommenced attacks on Iran, stoking concerns of a broader re-escalation in the gulf. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery was up $2.24 or 2.69 percent at $85.64 per barrel.