Asian Markets Trade Mixed Amid Tariff Worries

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Wednesday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders are cautious and are concerns about a global trade war after President Donald Trump decided to impose tariffs on imports from China, Mexico and Canada, with the trading partners retaliating with counter tariffs. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Tuesday.

Positive sentiment was generated in reaction to a report showing job openings in the U.S. fell by much more than expected in December, leading to some optimism about the outlook for interest rates.

Australian shares are trading notably higher on Wednesday, extending the gains in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is moving above the 8,400 level, with gains across most sectors led by mining and energy stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 47.50 points or 0.57 percent to 8,421.50, after touching a high of 8,441.20 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 55.50 points or 0.64 percent to 8,688.90. Australian stocks ended notably higher on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is gaining almost 2 percent, while Rio Tinto, Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are adding more than 2 percent each.

Oil stocks are higher. Woodside Energy is up 1.5 percent and Origin Energy is gaining almost 1 percent, while Santos and Beach energy are adding more than 1 percent each.

In the tech space, Appen is advancing more than 1 percent, WiseTech Global is adding more than 3 percent and Xero is gaining more than 1 percent, while Zip is losing almost 3 percent and Afterpay owner Block is declining more than 4 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are edging up 0.4 to 0.5 percent each, while Westpac is gaining almost 1 percent.

Among gold miners, Evolution Mining, Gold Road Resources, Resolute Mining and Newmont are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is adding more than 1 percent.

In other news, shares in Tower are surging almost 6 percent after the insurer upgraded its underlying net profit after tax guidance.

Shares in Insignia Financial jumped more than 7 percent after the financial services firm received a A$3.07 billion takeover offer from Brookfield.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.625 on Wednesday.

The Japanese stock market is trading slightly lower on Wednesday after opening in the green, reversing the gains in the previous session, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling to near the 38,700 level, with mixed performance across most sectors.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 38,727.19, down 71.18 points or 0.18 percent, after touching a high of 39,118.95 earlier. Japanese stocks ended notably higher on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining almost 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging up 0.2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining almost 3 percent and Toyota is edging up 0.3 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is edging up 0.2 percent, while Screen Holdings is losing more than 2 percent and Tokyo Electron is edging down 0.2 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging up 0.1 percent, while Mizuho Financial is edging down 0.3 percent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is flat.

Among the major exporters, Canon is losing almost 2 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is declining almost 5 percent, while Sony is edging up 0.2 percent and Panasonic is skyrocketing almost 12 percent after raising its earnings outlook for its energy division and announcing plans for management reform.

Among other major gainers, Nissan Motor and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha are gaining more than 4 percent each, while Tokyo Tatemono is adding almost 4 percent. Furukawa Electric, Resona Holdings and Nippon Yusen K.K are advancing almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Isetan Mitsukoshi is plunging more than 6 percent and Nichirei is losing almost 6 percent, while Yamato Holdings and Astellas Pharma are slipping more than 3 percent each. Yokogawa Electric, Socionext and Kyocera are declining almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, the services sector in Japan continued to expand in January, and at a faster pace, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed on Wednesday with a services PMI score of 53.0. That's up from 50.9 in December and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 153 yen-range on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is down 1.1 percent, while New Zealand, China, Singapore and Indonesia are lower by between 0.2 and 0.6 percent each, while Taiwan and South Korea are up 1.7 and 1.1 percent respectively. Malaysia is up 0.6 percent.

On the Wall Street, stocks moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday, largely offsetting the weakness seen in the previous session. The major averages all moved to the upside on the day, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the charge.

The major averages finished the session just off their best levels of the day. The Nasdaq jumped 262.06 points or 1.4 percent to 19,654.02, the S&P 500 climbed 43.31 points or 0.7 percent to 6,037.88 and the Dow rose 134.13 points or 0.3 percent to 44,556.04.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slipped 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index rose 0.4 percent and the French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.7 percent.

Crude oil prices fell on Tuesday as Trump agreed to postpone levies on Canada and Mexico's exports to the United States. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March settled at $72.70 a barrel, down $0.46 or about $0.63 percent.