CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Thursday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, after US President Donald Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping 'are going to work closely together to open up China to American Trade.' However, signs of escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East are weighing on market sentiment. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday.
Iran's defense minister has threatened that Tehran would target U.S. bases regionally if attacked.
Trump said a trade framework with China has been completed, with Beijing supplying full magnets and 'any necessary rare earths' up front and the U.S. allowing Chinese students into its colleges and universities while keeping tariffs unchanged.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick indicated that both sides agreed to lift export controls on key goods and technologies.
'WE ARE GETTING A TOTAL OF 55% TARIFFS, CHINA IS GETTING 10%,' Trump added. 'RELATIONSHIP IS EXCELLENT!'
Trump also said he plans to set unilateral tariffs in two weeks to pressure countries into trade deals.
The Australian market is trading modestly higher on Thursday, extending the gains in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is moving above the 8,600 level, with gains in gold miners and energy stocks partially offset by weakness in iron ore miners.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 22.00 points or 0.26 percent to 8,614.10, after touching a high of 8,617.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 22.60 points or 0.26 percent to 8,842.30. Australian stocks ended slightly higher on Wednesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are losing almost 1 percent each, while Mineral Resources is declining more than 3 percent and Fortescue Metals is slipping almost 2 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos is gaining 1.5 percent, Origin Energy is adding almost 1 percent, Beach energy is surging almost 5 percent and Woodside Energy is advancing more than 2 percent.
In the tech space, WiseTech Global and Xero are up almost 1 percent each, while Zip is losing almost 1 percent, Appen is down almost 4 percent and Afterpay owner Block is edging down 0.2 percent.
Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank and Westpac are edging up 0.2 to 0.3 percent each, while ANZ Banking is edging down 0.2 percent.
Among gold miners, Northern Star Resources and Gold Road Resources are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Newmont is adding 2.5 percent, Resolute Mining is advancing more than 3 percent and Evolution Mining is rising almost 2 percent.
In other news, shares in Cettire are tumbling more than 30 percent after the online luxury products retailer released another bleak trading update, with sales and margins lower than expected for the year-to-date period.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.649 on Thursday.
The Japanese market is trading notably lower on Thursday, snapping a four-session winning streak, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling well below the 38,200 level, with weakness across most sectors led by automakers, exporters and technology stocks. Financial stocks are the only bright spot.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 38,149.49, down 271.70 points or 0.71 percent, after hitting a low of 38,102.05 earlier. Japanese shares ended notably higher on Wednesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is declining almost 2 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is losing almost 2 percent and Honda is declining almost 1 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is edging up 0.5 percent, while Tokyo Electron is losing almost 1 percent and Screen Holdings is declining almost 3 percent.
In the banking sector, Mizuho Financial is gaining almost 1 percent, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are edging up 0.4 percent each.
Among the major exporters, Sony is edging up 0.3 percent, while Mitsubishi Electric is edging down 0.4 percent, Panasonic is slipping almost 2 percent and Canon is losing almost 1 percent.
Among other major losers, BayCurrent is declining more than 5 percent, Sumco is losing almost 4 percent and Hino Motors is down more than 3 percent, while Mitsui Mining & Smelting, Yaskawa Electric, Recruit Holdings and Isetan Mitsukoshi are declining almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, Sumitomo Pharma is soaring almost 17 percent and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is gaining more than 3 percent, while Japan Steel Works and Kawasaki Heavy Industries are adding almost 3 percent each.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 143 yen-range on Thursday.
Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan are lower by between 0.1 and 0.9 percent each, while Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia are higher by between 0.1 and 0.5 percent each.
On Wall Street, stocks gave back ground over the course of the trading day on Wednesday after moving to the upside early in the session. The major averages pulled back well off their early highs and the session in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 99.11 points or 0.5 percent to 19,615.88, the S&P 500 dipped 16.57 points or 0.3 percent to 6,022.24 and the Dow edged down 1.10 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 42,865.77.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.4 percent.
Crude oil prices surged on Wednesday amid the trade talks between the U.S. and China, as well as a fresh stand-off between the U.S. and Iran over a nuclear deal. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery closed up by $3.32 or 5.11 percent to settle at $68.30 per barrel.
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