Asian stock markets closed without a single direction on Monday (24), after the release of a series of dammed indicators in China, including the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the closing of the Chinese Communist Party congress.
In its biggest one-day tumble since November 2008, the Hang Seng index tumbled 6.36% in Hong Kong to 15,180.59 points amid a sharp sell-off in technology stocks after Chinese President Xi Jinping gave himself even a third consecutive term and consolidate his power at the close of China’s leadership congress over the weekend.
In mainland China, equities briefly moved into positive territory after better-than-expected growth data, but ended up ending up trading in the red. The Shanghai Composite dropped 2.02% to 2,977.56 points, falling below the psychological 3,000-point level, and the less comprehensive Shenzhen Composite dropped 1.76% to 1,932.34 points.
In the third quarter, China’s GDP expanded 3.9% year-on-year, higher than the forecast gain of 3.5% and accelerating from the 0.4% advance in the previous quarter.
The result, however, is still one of the worst in decades, as the world’s second-largest economy still grapples with the effects of severe restrictions adopted by Beijing to contain outbreaks of covid-19.
China’s GDP and indicators for industry, retail and foreign trade were released on Monday with a delay of several days, allegedly caused by the Communist Party meeting, which is held every five years.
Elsewhere in Asia, the Nikkei rose 0.31% in Tokyo today to 26,974.90 points amid alleged Japanese government interventions in currency to stem the yen’s devaluation, while the South Korean Kospi advanced 1.04 % in Seoul, at 2,236.16 points, and Taiex posted a 0.29% gain in Taiwan, at 12,856.98 points.
The positive tone in parts of the Asian region also comes after New York stocks jumped more than 2% on Friday (21), amid expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed, the US central bank) could moderate the pace of their interest rate increases.
In Oceania, the Australian stock exchange had a largely positive Monday, reversing last week’s losses. The S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.54% in Sydney at 6,779.40 points.
Source: CNN Brasil
Joe Jameson, a technology journalist with over 2 years of experience, writes for top online news websites. Specializing in the field of technology, Joe provides insights into the latest advancements in the industry. Currently, he contributes to covering the world stock market.
