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Asia stocks set to decline; investors await China’s tariff cuts on some US products
Stocks in Asia were edged lower in Friday morning trade as concerns around the ongoing coronavirus outbreak continue to weigh on investor sentiment.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.65% as shares of index heavyweight Fast Retailing dropped 1.77%. The Topix index also declined 0.62%. Shares of automaker Nissan plunged more than 6% after the company…
Stocks in Asia were edged lower in Friday morning trade as concerns around the ongoing coronavirus outbreak continue to weigh on investor sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.65% as shares of index heavyweight Fast Retailing dropped 1.77%. The Topix index also declined 0.62%. Shares of automaker Nissan plunged more than 6% after the company cut its annual operating forecast by more than 40%.
South Korea's Kospi also shed 0.21%. Meanwhile, stocks in Australia were little changed in morning trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 hovering above the flatline.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan edged 0.06% lower.
China is set to halve tariff rates on certain U.S. products worth about $75 billion with effect later on Friday, as previously announced by Beijing in early February.
Retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods will be cut from 10% to 5%, and from 5% to 2.5% on others, according to a statement from China's Ministry of Finance earlier this month. The adjustments will take effect from 1:01 p.m on Feb. 14, it said, without specifying which time zone it was referring to.
Investors continue to watch for developments on the coronavirus outbreak following Thursday's spike in the number of cases reported after authorities in Hubei introduced a new method for tabulating case totals. On Friday, the province reported an additional 116 deaths and 4,823 new confirmed cases as of the end of Feb. 13.
On the corporate earnings front, Japan's Toshiba and Singapore's Singapore Airlines are expected to announce their quarterly results on Friday.
Overnight on Wall Street, stocks slipped from record highs amid the coronavirus fears. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 128.11 points to 29,423.31 while the S&P 500 fell nearly 0.2% to 3,373.94. The Nasdaq Composite closed 0.1% lower at 9,711.97.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 99.067 after seeing an earlier low below 98.9.
The Japanese yen traded at 109.75 per dollar after seeing levels around 109.9 yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6717 after declining from levels above $0.672 yesterday.
What's on tap on Friday:
- Singapore: Singapore Airlines earnings for the third quarter
- Japan: Toshiba earnings for the third quarter
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