Asian stocks looked set to decline on Friday, tracking losses seen on Wall Street amid investor concerns about the trade dispute between the U.S. and China.
Futures pointed to a lower open for Japan and Australia. Nikkei futures traded in Chicago fell 1.23 percent compared to the index’s previous close and Australian SPI futures were down 0.49 percent at the end of the last session.
Stocks stateside, meanwhile, closed lower in the last session, with trade tensions between Washington and Beijing continuing to weigh on investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.8 percent, or 196.10 points, to close at 24,461.70 and mark the index’s eighth straight day of losses. The S&P 500 edged lower by 0.63 percent to end at 2,749.76 and the Nasdaq composite finished down 0.88 percent at 7,712.95.
Ahead, all eyes will be on OPEC and its allies as they meet in Vienna later on Friday. Markets are expecting the oil producers to ease production cuts that have been in place since 2017, but it’s a possibility the meeting could end without a consensus, Iran’s oil minister has said.
Oil prices were lower ahead of the highly watched meeting. Brent crude futures settled $1.69 at $73.05 per barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures shed 17 cents to settle at $65.54.
Also of note, the Bank of England on Thursday held rates steady, but the central bank was seen as a touch more hawkish after one more committee member, BOE Chief Economist Andy Haldane, voted for a rate hike.
The British pound firmed on the back of that development, last trading at $1.3246 at 7:07 a.m. HK/SIN after touching a recent seven-month low.
The dollar was broadly softer, with the dollar index at 94.743 at the end of Thursday. Against the yen, the dollar slipped to trade at 109.93.
In corporate news, South Korea’s financial regulator proposed late on Thursday that Samsung Securities have some of its operations suspended for six months following a “fat finger” error that took place earlier this year.
Here are the major economic data points in Asia on Friday (all times in HK/SIN):
- 7:30 a.m.: Japan May consumer price index
- 8:30 a.m.: Japan Nikkei manufacturing flash PMI
Source: cnbc china
Asian shares set to decline, taking cues from Wall Street's losses; OPEC meeting ahead