Forex Marketz Daily Forex News – Fully Markets Update
Asian stock bourses were mixed Friday morning as the US dollar gave back some games overnight. Investors are further digesting US tax reform. Asian Markets also digested a round of economic data out of Japan.
The Japanese Nikkei 225 was down 0.29 percent after the dollar’s rally paused overnight. The U.S. dollar did inch higher against the yen after the release of economic data early in the day. The USD/JPY was at 112.57 by at 9:39 am Hong Kong time. This was up from 112.41seen earlier in the session. It is still below ¥113 seen on Thursday.
Across the Korean Strait, the Kospi Composite index rose 0.53 percent. Many manufacturing, retail and oil plays saw gains. Automakers were also a bit higher. Shares of Hyundai Motor were up 2.04 percent and Kia Motors rose 1.3 percent.
In other Asian and Pacific Rim markets, in Australia, the S&P ASX 200 fell as the session continued. The index was trading lower by 0.05 percent. We saw gains in materials being offset by losses in energy plays.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 0.09 percent. Mainland Chinese markets made small gains. The Shanghai Composite was up 0.27 percent and the Shenzhen Composite rose 0.555 percent.
Asian Investors eye the Dollar
The US dollar lost some steam overnight. The dollar had surged on optimism surrounding the release of the GOP’s tax reform plans on Wednesday. The plan calls for a lower corporate tax rate. The plan will also cut the highest individual income tax rate. Criticism, not surprisingly, has come about. Democrats are concerned over how the plan was leaning towards the wealthy. Also questions remained about how these tax cuts will be funded.
By 9:40 am Hong Kong time, the US dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of rivals, was flat. The dollar index fetched 93.148. It had climbed as high as 93.66 during North American trade.
