CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian markets are trading mixed on Thursday, following the negative cues from Wall Street overnight, on news that US President Donald Trump digitally signed an interim peace deal with Iran to end the war with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Concerns remain about the outlook for interest rates after the US Fed left interest rates unchanged, but projected rates could be higher by year-end. Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday.
The Australian market is trading modestly lower on Thursday, snapping a four-session winning streak, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling well below the 8,950 level, with weakness mining stocks partially offset by gains in energy and financial stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 38.30 points or 0.43 percent to 8,928.00, after hitting a low of 8,922.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 40.70 points or 0.44 percent to 9,145.20. Australian stocks ended notably higher on Wednesday.
Among major miners, Rio Tinto, Fortescue and Mineral Resources are declining more than 1 percent each, while BHP Group is losing almost 1 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly higher. Beach energy is adding more than 1 percent, Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent and Origin Energy is edging up 0.2 percent, while Santos is edging down 0.4 percent.
In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block and WiseTech Global are flat, while Zip and Appen are gaining more than 2 percent each. Xero is down more than 1 percent.
Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank is edging up 0.5 percent and ANZ Banking is adding more than 1 percent each, while Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are gaining almost 1 percent each.
Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Resolute Mining are losing almost 3 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is declining more than 2 percent, Newmont is down almost 1 percent and Genesis Minerals is slipping almost 2 percent.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.703 on Thursday.
The Japanese market is trading sharply higher on Thursday, extending the gains in the previous four sessions, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 71,050 level to all-time highs, with strong gains in technology and financial stocks partially offset by weakness in automaker stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 71,052.30, up 1,150.05 points or 1.65 percent, after touching an all-time high of 71,398.58 earlier. Japanese stocks ended notably higher on Wednesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is advancing more than 3 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging up 0.1 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is edging down 0.5 percent and Honda is losing almost 1 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is adding almost 1 percent, Screen Holdings is surging almost 7 percent and Tokyo Electron is gaining more than 3 percent.
In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial are all gaining more than 3 percent each.
Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric is advancing more than 4 percent and Panasonic is gaining almost 3 percent, while Sony is losing almost 1 percent. Canon is flat.
Among other major gainers, Murata Manufacturing is soaring more than 12 percent, Socionext is surging more than 9 percent, and Recruit Holdings is jumping almost 8 percent, while Ajinomoto and Mitsubishi Electric are rising almost 6 percent each. Ibiden and UBE are advancing more than 5 percent each, while Resona Holdings, Renesas Electronics and Fuji Electric are gaining more than 4 percent each. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Yaskawa Electric are adding almost 4 percent each.
Conversely, Konami Group, DeNA and Nissan Motor are declining almost 3 percent each.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 160 yen-range on Thursday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong and Indonesia are down 1.7 and 2.0 percent, respectively, while New Zealand is down 0.2 percent. Taiwan is up 1.7 percent, while Singapore, South Korea and Malaysia are higher by between 0.2 and 0.7 percent each. China is relatively flat.
On Wall Street, stocks saw significant volatility immediately following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday but came under considerable selling pressure in the latter part of the trading session.
The major averages all showed significant moves to the downside, closing firmly in negative territory. The Nasdaq plunged 354.69 points or 1.3 percent to 26,021.66, the S&P 500 tumbled 91.25 points or 1.2 percent to 7,420.10 and the Dow slumped 507.12 points or 1 percent to 51,492.55.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index dipped by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both inched up by 0.1 percent.
Crude oil prices ticked higher on Wednesday as energy experts remain skeptical of an early restoration of normal oil trade in the gulf region despite the upcoming U.S.-Iran deal. West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery was up $0.45 or 0.59 percent at $76.50 per barrel.
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