SINGAPORE — Shares in the Asia-Pacific region were mixed on Monday as global concerns continued to plague investors.
In Japan markets, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.7%, while the Topix climbed 0.74%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 struggled for direction around the flatline and was last down 0.02%.
Greater China markets dropped, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index falling 1.88% and the Hang Seng Tech index sliding 3.13%. Bilibili was 4.56% lower and Alibaba’s Hong Kong shares fell 4.6%.
The Shanghai Composite slipped 0.47% and the Shenzhen Component declined 0.71%.
Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng is set to report its first-quarter earnings on Monday. The company’s shares in Hong Kong fell nearly 9% in Asia trade.
In other markets, South Korea’s Kospi struggled for direction and was last 0.08% higher, while the Kosdaq was up 0.29%.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.42%.
I think at the moment, the market is expecting a Fed that’s just going to keep hiking and crush inflation, get it right back down, stomp it down, and that is hurting.
Isaac Poole
chief investment officer, Oreana Financial Services
Stocks stateside have been taking a battering as markets grow fearful over whether there will be a recession.
In the U.S., the S&P 500 briefly fell into bear market territory during Friday’s session, but recovered slightly to close almost flat. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 8.77 points to 31,261.90 after reversing losses of more than 600 points.
The Nasdaq Composite is already deep in bear market territory, 30% off its highs, and fell 0.3% on Friday. All three indexes have posted at least a seven-week losing streak.
A market bottom could be some way away, depending on how aggressive the Fed is, according to Isaac Poole, chief investment officer at Oreana Financial Services.
“I think at the moment, the market is expecting a Fed that’s just going to keep hiking and crush inflation, get it right back down, stomp it down, and that is hurting,” he told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.”
Once the Fed signals that it will take things meeting by meeting, there is likely to be “quite a lot of upside to markets,” he added.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 102.688, lower compared to the levels above 103 seen last week.
The Japanese yen traded at 127.36 per dollar, stronger than the 129 levels early last week. The Australian dollar strengthened and was last at $0.7088.
Oil futures rose in Asia’s morning trade. U.S. crude rose 0.57% to $110.91 per barrel, while Brent crude gained 0.75% to $113.39.
