CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are mostly higher on Wednesday, with some of the markets recovering following a weak start after a private survey showed that China's service sector activity expanded at the fastest pace in three months in August. The data helped ease worries about a recession after a report showed that U.S. manufacturing activity in August contracted for the first time in three years.
The Australian market is declining following the negative cues from Wall Street. Investors also digested data that showed Australia's GDP for the second quarter rose in line with expectations.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 34.50 points or 0.52 percent to 6,538.90, after touching a low of 6,535.00 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 26.30 points or 0.39 percent to 6,647.20. Australian stocks closed flat on Tuesday.
The big four banks are notably lower. ANZ Banking, National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are lower in a range of 1.0 percent to 1.2 percent.
In the mining sector, Rio Tinto is declining more than 1 percent, BHP Billiton is declining almost 1 percent and Fortescue Metals is down 0.5 percent.
In the oil space, Oil Search is rising more than 2 percent and Santos is adding 0.6 percent, while Woodside Petroleum is declining almost 1 percent after crude oil prices fell overnight.
Gold miners Newcrest Mining and Evolution Mining are rising more than 2 percent each after gold prices surged overnight.
On the economic front, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that Australia's gross domestic product expanded a seasonally adjusted 0.5 percent on quarter in the second quarter of 2019. That was in line with expectations and unchanged from the previous three months following an upward revision from +0.4 percent.
The latest survey from the Australian Industry Group showed that the service sector in Australia moved into expansion territory in August, with a Performance of Services Index score of 51.4. That's up sharply from 43.9 and it moves back above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar rebounded against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday. The local currency was quoted at $0.6769, compared to $0.6725 on Tuesday.
The Japanese market is losing and the safe-haven yen strengthened following the weak cues from Wall Street.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is down 42.53 points or 0.21 percent to 20,582.63, after touching a low of 20,554.16 earlier. Japanese shares edged up on Tuesday.
The major exporters are lower on a stronger yen. Panasonic and Mitsubishi Electric are declining more than 1 percent each, while Canon is losing almost 1 percent. Sony is edging up 0.1 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is edging up 0.2 percent, while Tokyo Electron is down 0.2 percent. In the auto sector, Honda Motor is lower by 0.2 percent and Toyota Motor is declining almost 1 percent.
Market heavyweight SoftBank is lower by more than 1 percent and Fast Retailing is losing almost 2 percent.
Among oil stocks, Japan Petroleum is down 0.4 percent, while Inpex is adding 0.4 percent.
Among the other major gainers, Yahoo Japan and Kyowa Kirin are rising almost 2 percent each.
On the flip side, NSK, Credit Saison and Tokuyama Corp. are losing more than 3 percent each.
In economic news, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed that the services sector in Japan accelerated in August on Wednesday with a PMI score of 53.3. That's up from 51.8 in July and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the upper 105 yen-range on Wednesday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is rising more than 1 percent, while Shanghai, South Korea, Singapore, New Zealand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan are all higher.
On Wall Street, stocks showed a notable move to the downside during trading on Tuesday as traders returned to their desks following the long holiday weekend. Initial selling pressure was generated in reaction to new tariffs taking effect over the Labor Day weekend in the escalating U.S.-China trade war. Stocks saw further downside following the release of a report from the Institute for Supply Management showing U.S. manufacturing activity contracted for the first time in three years.
The Dow slumped 285.26 points or 1.1 percent to 26,118.02, the Nasdaq tumbled 88.72 points or 1.1 percent to 7,874.16 and the S&P 500 slid 20.19 points or 0.7 percent to 2,906.27.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on Tuesday. While the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index fell by 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dipped by 0.2 percent.
Crude oil prices declined sharply on Tuesday amid signs of rising OPEC and Russian oil output and on concerns about the outlook for near term energy demand. WTI crude for October ended down $1.16 or 2.1 percent at $53.94 a barrel, the lowest close since August 26.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX