Asian stocks ended mostly lower on Tuesday as investors awaited U.S. inflation data later this week for more indications about the Fed’s policy outlook.<\/p>\n
Chinese shares fell, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropping 19.43 points, or 0.5 percent, to 3,580.11. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index ended marginally lower at 28,781.38.<\/p>\n
Japanese shares ended a volatile session lower, snapping two straight sessions of gains even as the government revised first quarter GDP higher.<\/p>\n
Japan’s gross domestic product shrank an annualized 3.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2021, the Cabinet Office said in a final reading amid a resurge of COVID-19 cases and slow vaccine rollouts. That exceeded expectations for a decline of 4.8 percent following the 11.7 percent surge in the three months prior.<\/p>\n
On a quarterly basis, GDP was down 1.0 percent – again beating forecasts for a decline of 1.2 percent following the 2.8 percent increase in the previous three months.<\/p>\n
The Nikkei 225 Index slipped 55.68 points, or 0.2 percent, to 28,963.56, while the broader Topix finished marginally lower at 1,962.65. Eisai shares soared 19.3 percent as U.S. regulators approved a new drug developed by Biogen and Eisai for Alzheimer’s disease.<\/p>\n
Australian markets<\/span> swung between gains and losses before finishing slightly higher for the day as new coronavirus cases declined and a survey of business<\/span> conditions reached a record high in May.<\/p>\n The benchmark S&P\/ASX 200 Index hit a record high before ending the session up 10.70 points, or 0.2 percent, at 7,292.60. The broader All Ordinaries Index inched up 10.70 points, or 0.1 percent, to 7,542.30.<\/p>\n Tech stocks tracked the Nasdaq higher, with Afterpay, Xero and Appen climbing 1-3 percent. Nearmap rallied 4.6 percent and Wisetech Global shares surged 5.8 percent.<\/p>\n Miners BHP, Fortescue Metals Group and Rio Tinto fell about 1 percent as iron ore prices declined. Gold miner Northern Star Resources rose over 1 percent as gold held near the key level of $1,900 an ounce in Asian trading on dollar weakness and lower bond yields.<\/p>\n Seoul stocks slipped into the red as valuation concerns offset hopes of a swifter economic recovery. The benchmark Kospi dipped 4.29 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 3,247.83.<\/p>\n Chipmaker SK Hynix shed 0.8 percent and chemical firm LG Chem gave up 0.7 percent, while pharmaceutical firm Samsung Biologics advanced 1.5 percent and automaker Hyundai Motor added 0.8 percent.<\/p>\n South Korea’s current account surplus shrank dramatically in April, the Bank of Korea said today, coming in at $1.91 billion. That’s down sharply from 7.82 billion in March. The goods account surplus increased to $4.56 billion, compared to $0.7 billion in April.<\/p>\n New Zealand shares eked out modest gains, with the benchmark NZX-50 Index ending up 21.38 points, or 0.2 percent, at 12,517.65. A2 Milk, Spark New Zealand and Contact Energy climbed 1-2 percent.<\/p>\n U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight amid lingering inflation worries and news of a global minimum corporate tax rate. <\/p>\n The Dow dropped 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 slipped 0.1 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose half a percent. <\/p>\n