Illuminated skyscrapers stand at the central business district at sunset on November 13, 2023 in Beijing, China.
Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets opened lower Wednesday, with Japan stocks leading losses, following declines on Wall Street.
Investors will be watching for more stimulus measures to prop up the real estate sector in China as its housing minister is set to hold a press briefing on Thursday 10 a.m. local time, according to a statement from the State Council Information Office on Tuesday.
Traders in Asia also assessed economic data from the region. New Zealand reported that its consumer prices index for the third quarter rose 2.2% year on year, in line with economists’ expectations in a Reuters poll. It climbed 0.6% on quarter, slightly lower than the anticipated 0.7%.
South Korea’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate came in at 2.5% in September, compared to 2.4% in August.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.85%, while the broad-based Topix dropped 1.13%.
Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 20,096, much lower than its previous close of 20,318.79 — the index lost 3.7% after a choppy session on Tuesday.
Futures tied to mainland Chinese CSI 300 blue-chip index ticked higher at 3,877.6, compared to its previous close at 3,856.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 started the day 0.4% lower.
South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.22% and the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 0.93%.
Overnight in the U.S., stocks tumbled amid corporate earnings season.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 324.80 points, or 0.75%, closing at 42,740.42. The 30-stock average touched a fresh intraday record before sliding. The S&P 500 slipped 0.76% to end at 5,815.26, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.01% to 18,315.59.
The declines came following a winning session on Monday that sent the S&P 500 and Dow to all-time highs.
West Texas Intermediate oil futures dropped 4.6% Tuesday as traders monitored Israel’s expected retaliation to Iran missile attacks and U.S. efforts to prevent a wider regional conflict.
West Texas Intermediate oil futures climbed back up slightly on Wednesday, after dropping more than 4% overnight, following the report that Israel had told the U.S. that it does not plan to target its strike at Iran’s oil facilities.
— CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Yun Li contributed to this report.
