Asian stocks close mixed, after rally in NY and revision of Japanese GDP

Asian stocks closed without a single direction on Thursday (8), after a rally on Wall Street and data showed that Japan grew more than expected.

Leading gains in Asia, the Nikkei stock index jumped 2.31% in Tokyo to 28,065.28 points, after the annualized advance in Japanese Gross Domestic Product (GDP) between April and June was revised up from 2.2% to 3.5%.

Elsewhere in the Asian region, South Korean Kospi rose 0.33% in Seoul, at 2,384.28 points, and Taiex rose 1.20% in Taiwan, at 14,583.42 points.

On Wednesday, New York stocks made strong gains, after the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book (Fed, the US central bank) eased concerns about US inflation.

In mainland China, however, stock markets were in the red on Thursday, a day after export data showed the world’s second-largest economy slowing amid Covid-19 outbreaks and the most severe heat wave in decades.

The Shanghai Composite was down 0.33% to 3,235.59 points, and the less comprehensive Shenzhen Composite was down 0.89% to 2,104.39 points.

In Hong Kong, the day was also one of losses: the Hang Seng fell 1% to 18,854.62 points, pressured by technology stocks.

Oceania

In Oceania, the Australian bourse was boosted by comments suggesting that the local central bank, known as the RBA, may moderate the pace of rate hikes.

The S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.77% in Sydney at 6,848.70 points. On Tuesday, the RBA raised its benchmark rate by 50 basis points for the fourth time in a row, to 2.35%.