(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks traded mixed Tuesday as investors mulled another all-time high for U.S. shares on optimism the global recovery can weather risks from the coronavirus and tighter policy.
Equities climbed about 1% in Japan but slipped in Hong Kong and fluctuated in China and South Korea. U.S. futures dipped following the S&P 500’s 69th record close this year, though volumes on Wall Street were lower than average in the wake of the Christmas break.
China’s central bank — which on the weekend vowed more economic support — boosted a short-term liquidity injection. Traders also digested new curbs from Beijing on certain offshore listings and a looming interest payment deadline for struggling property giant China Evergrande Group — whose shares climbed Tuesday.
Shorter maturity U.S. Treasury yields rose, while those for longer-dated bonds were steady. The dollar was little changed. Oil pushed higher amid bets that economic reopening faces only a temporary setback from the omicron virus-strain outbreak.
Global shares are on course for a third year of double-digit returns, powered by the U.S. surge. The climb has overcome coronavirus waves and a shift by some key central banks toward tighter monetary policy to fight high inflation. Concerns remain that those variables could spur heightened volatility.
“The remedies that we put in place to counter the Covid recessions, they were so substantial, we had massive stimulus,” Sandip Bhagat, chief investment officer of Whittier Trust, said on Bloomberg Television. “We’ll be left with a legacy of those policy responses well into the future” and stocks can continue advancing, he said.
Under the latest step in Beijing’s regulatory crackdown, China will impose new restrictions on offshore listings by firms in sectors off-limits to foreign investment. That could plug a loophole long used by the country’s technology industry to raise capital overseas.
Elsewhere, cryptocurrencies gave up some of their recent advance, with Bitcoin sliding below the $50,000 level.
What to watch this week:
- U.S. initial jobless claims, Thursday
For more market analysis, read our MLIV blog.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- S&P 500 futures fell 0.1% as of 10:40 a.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 rose 1.4%
- Nasdaq 100 futures dipped 0.1%. The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.6%
- Japan’s Topix index climbed 1%
- South Korea’s Kospi index was flat
- China’s Shanghai Composite index fell 0.1%
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.2%
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was steady
- The euro was at $1.1323
- The Japanese yen was at 114.85 per dollar
- The offshore yuan was at 6.3749 per dollar
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries held at 1.48%
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.4% to $75.87 a barrel
- Gold was at $1,809.98 an ounce, down 0.1%
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