BEIJING – Asian stocks declined on Thursday after Wall Street’s rebound amidst uncertainty about the trade tension between the United States and China.
Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong declined.
Investors were looking for news about the outlook for U.S.-Chinese trade negotiations following confusion over President Donald Trump’s conflicting statements about the status of talks.
Negotiators are due to meet in September but there has been no sign of progress. Investors worry the spiraling tariff war over trade and technology could tip the global economy into recession.
“Investors are growing more and more uncertain,” said Hannah Anderson of JP Morgan Asset Management in a report.
Markets are less sensitive to each announcement of U.S. and Chinese tariff hikes, but “we will likely continue to see downward price action at the announcements of new measures,” said Anderson.
The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.2 percent to 2,886.83.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.5 percent to 20,377.97.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng retreated 0.8 percent to 25,394.32.
South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.2 percent to 1,936.70 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 was 5 points lower at 6,495.80. Benchmarks in Taiwan, New Zealand and Southeast Asia also retreated.
Wall Street closed broadly higher, recovering from the previous day’s losses.
Retailers, health care and industrial companies notched solid gains. Financial and energy stocks also helped power the rally.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.7 percent to 2,887.94.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1 percent to 26,036.10.
The Nasdaq gained 0.4 percent to 7,856.88. (AP)
