Home World Asia-Pacific markets little changed in early trade; SoftBank shares fall 2%

Asia-Pacific markets little changed in early trade; SoftBank shares fall 2%

by Asia Insider

SINGAPORE — Shares in the Asia-Pacific were flat Tuesday on a quiet data day as markets continue to digest last week’s stellar U.S. jobs report.

Shares of SoftBank fell nearly 5% in early trade after its Vision Fund reported a 2.93 trillion Japanese yen ($21.68 billion) loss for the June quarter on Monday after the market close. The tech-focused fund has suffered as central banks raise interest rates to fight inflation.

The Nikkei 225 and the Topix index in Japan were fractionally lower.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was little changed.

South Korea’s Kospi inched up 0.23% while the Kosdaq was 0.7% higher.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was mildly higher.

In economic data, investors are looking ahead to the U.S. consumer price index data due Wednesday stateside.

Singapore and India markets are closed for a holiday on Tuesday.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 dipped 0.12% to 4,140.06 and the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.1% to 12,644.46. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose slightly to close at 32,832.54.

Currencies and oil

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the currency against a basket of six foreign currencies, was at 106.343, slightly lower after its recent jump to nearly 107.

“Continued hawkish messages from the Fed and a strong CPI result can support the USD,” Kristina Clifton, an economist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, wrote in a Tuesday morning note.

The Japanese yen traded at 134.86 per dollar following a sharp weakening after last week’s strong U.S. jobs report.

The Australian dollar was at $0.6987. It briefly climbed above $0.70 overnight.

Oil futures settled nearly 2% higher on Monday’s session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were 0.28% lower on Tuesday morning in Asia, at $90.51 per barrel, while Brent crude shed 0.25% to $96.41 per barrel.

— CNBC’s Arjun Kharpal contributed to this report.

Source: CNBC

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