Asian stocks mostly close lower, eyeing Fed and Russia

Stocks in Asia and the Pacific closed mostly lower on Wednesday, following yesterday’s negative tone on Wall Street, amid concerns about the withdrawal of monetary stimulus in the US and the imposition of new sanctions on Russia. .

The Japanese stock index Nikkei fell 1.58% in Tokyo, at 27,350.30 points, while the Hang Seng dropped 1.87% in Hong Kong, at 22,080.52 points.

South Korean Kospi lost 0.88% in Seoul, at 2,735.03 points, and Taiex lost 0.58% in Taiwan, at 17,522.50 points.

In mainland China, markets were flat after returning from two days of public holidays. The Shanghai Composite was up 0.02% to 3,283.43 points, and the less comprehensive Shenzhen Composite gained just 0.01% to 2,127.96 points.

A lack of risk appetite in Asia followed another round of losses on Wall Street. New York stock markets saw widespread losses yesterday after “hawkish” comments from a Fed official and the US Treasury imposed new sanctions on Russia, as evidence emerged of killings of civilians by Moscow forces. in Ukraine.

The Fed releases, this Wednesday (6), the minutes of its last monetary policy meeting and Washington is expected to announce more sanctions on Russia, this time targeting authorities.

The latest activity data from the Chinese service sector, in turn, was dismal. China’s services PMI as measured by S&P Global and Caixin Media fell to 42 in March, returning to a contraction and touching the lowest since February 2020, the early stage of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In Oceania, the Australian stock exchange was in the red, with losses led by the technology sector. The S&P/ASX 200 is down 0.50% in Sydney at 7,490.10.

With information from Dow Jones Newswires