Asian Stocks in Tight Ranges After US Tech Boost
Stocks in Asia traded in tight ranges amid relatively thin holiday trading after a rally in some of the world’s largest technology companies boosted US benchmarks.
Shares swung between gains and losses in Japan and edged lower in Australia, with shortened sessions in Hong Kong and Sydney for Christmas Eve. US equity futures were little changed after Tesla Inc. and Nvidia Corp. drove a gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps up 1.4% Monday, helping the S&P 500 erase an earlier slide fueled by weaker-than-expected US consumer confidence data.
Treasury 10-year yields opened little changed Tuesday at 4.58%, while Bloomberg’s gauge of the dollar climbed 0.1%.
Nissan Motor Co. shares slid as much as 7.3% in Tokyo after the company confirmed it’s in talks with Honda Motor Co. over a possible business integration. Honda shares climbed as much as 14%.
Data from South Korea on Tuesday showed consumer confidence dropped this month by the most since the outbreak of Covid-19, battered by the political turmoil triggered by President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law and his impeachment. That will raise concerns about a further slowdown in private spending and boost speculation that the Bank of Korea may consider a rate cut in January.
Source: Bloomberg
