CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Monday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday, amid renewed concerns about inflation after a report showed that US producer prices increased by much more than expected in December. New tariff threats from US President Donald Trump is also contributing to the negative sentiment. Currencies in the region also weakened against the US dollar. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Friday.
The Australian stock market is significantly lower on Monday, extending the losses in the previous three sessions, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling below the 8,800.00 level, with weakness across most sectors led by strong losses in gold and technology stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 92.80 points or 1.50 percent to 8,776.30, after hitting a low of 8,776.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 97.20 points or 1.06 percent to 9,067.60. Australian stocks closed notably lower on Friday.
Among the major miners, BHP Group is losing almost 2 percent, Mineral Resources is declining more than 3 percent and Rio Tinto is edging down 0.4 percent, while Fortescue is edging up 0.4 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy is losing almost 1 percent and Woodside Energy in down more than 1 percent, Santos is declining 2.5 percent and Origin Energy is edging down 0.2 percent.
Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is declining more than 2 percent, WiseTech Global is losing almost 3 percent, Appen is tumbling almost 9 percent and Xero is down almost 1 percent, while Zip is advancing almost 2 percent.
Gold miners are lower. Northern Star Resources is declining more than 7 percent, Evolution Mining is losing almost 6 percent and Resolute Mining is slipping more than 5 percent, while Newmont and Genesis Minerals is tumbling more than 8 percent each.
Among the big four banks, Westpac and ANZ Banking are edging up 0.2 percent each, while Commonwealth Bank is gaining almost 1 percent. National Australia Bank is losing almost 1 percent.
In other news, shares in GrainCorp are plunging almost 15 percent after slashing its underlying net profit and underlying EBITDA guidance for the full year 2026.
In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Australia continued to expand in January, and at a faster pace, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Monday with a manufacturing PMI score of 52.3. That's up from 51.6 in December and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.697 on Monday.
The Japanese stock market is trading modestly higher on Monday, reversing the slight losses in the previous session, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday, with the Nikkei 225 moving above the 53,400 level, with gains across most sectors led by automakers and exporter stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 53,422.01, up 99.16 points or 0.19 percent, after touching a high of 54,247.15 earlier. Japanese shares ended slightly lower on Friday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging down 0.4 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is gaining more than 2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining almost 2 percent and Toyota is advancing almost 3 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is advancing almost 2 percent and Screen Holdings is surging almost 6 percent, while Tokyo Electron is edging down 0.2 percent.
In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is adding almost 1 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is gaining 1.5 percent and Mizuho Financial is advancing almost 2 percent.
The major exporters are mostly higher. Mitsubishi Electric and Canon are advancing almost 3 percent each, while Sony is edging up 0.3 percent and Panasonic is gaining almost 1 percent.
Among the other major gainers, Ebara, Fujikura and Takashimaya are surging more than 5 percent each, while TDK, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Hoya, Toto and Sumitomo Electric Industries are advancing more than 4 percent each. Aeon, Hino Motors, Isetan Mitsukoshi, Komatsu, Daiichi Sankyo and Subaru are gaining almost 4 percent each.
Conversely, Lasertec and Sumitomo Metal Mining are tumbling more than 8 percent each, while ZOZO and Kyowa Kirin are slipping almost 7 percent each. Dowa Holdings is declining more than 4 percent and Konami Group is down more than 4 percent, while Nomura Holdings, Mitsubishi Materials and Tokuyama are losing almost 3 percent each.
In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Japan bounced up into expansion territory in January, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Monday with a manufacturing PMI score of 51.5. That's up from 50.0 in December, which marked stagnation as being right non the line that separates expansion from contraction.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 155 yen-range on Monday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is down 2.1 percent, while China, Singapore and Taiwan are lower by between 0.5 and 1.5 percent each. New Zealand and Indonesia are up 0.6 and 1.2 percent, respectively. South Korea is relatively flat. Malaysia is closed for Thaipusam holiday.
On Wall Street, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Friday but maintained a negative bias throughout the day before eventually closing mostly lower. After recovering from an early sell-off to end Thursday's session mixed, the major averages all finished the day firmly in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way lower, slumping 223.30 points or 0.9 percent to 23,461.82, while the Dow slid 179.09 points or 0.4 percent to 48,892.47 and the S&P 500 fell 29.98 points or 0.4 percent to 6,939.03.
Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index advanced by 0.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index climbed by 0.7 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.5 percent.
Crude oil prices slid on Friday as the U.S. dollar index moved higher, while the possibility of diplomatic intervention in the U.S.-Iran conflict also weighed on prices. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery was down $0.22 or 0.34 percent at $65.20 per barrel.
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