TOKYO, JAPAN — Investors considered the latest quarterly earnings reports from key U.S. firms and statistics pointing to growing inflation as Asian markets were mainly lower on Wednesday, matching a loss on Wall Street. In early trade, the Nikkei 225 NIK, -0.30 percent, Japan’s benchmark index, fell 0.3 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 XJO, +0.09% in Australia gained 0.1 percent, while the Kospi 180721, -0.31 percent in South Korea fell 0.3 percent. The Hang Seng Index HSI, -0.58 percent in Hong Kong down 0.6 percent, while the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, -0.82 percent in Shanghai fell 0.8 percent. Taiwan’s Y9999 index climbed by 0.10 percent, while Malaysia’s FBMKLCI fell by 0.14 percent. Singapore’s STI index fell by 0.18 percent, and Indonesia’s JAKIDX index fell by 0.89 percent.
“This backdrop of higher for longer U.S. inflation, a quicker raising Fed, and a strengthening USD is not a healthy formula for emerging Asia,” said Robert Carnell, Asia-Pacific regional head of research at ING. Another source of concern, he noted, is the rise in coronavirus cases in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Cases are also increasing in South Korea. It produced data that showed a decrease in the unemployment rate, although the figures were gathered before the pandemic limitations were tightened. COVID-19 infections are also on the rise in several parts of Japan, raising concerns about the tens of thousands of athletes, dignitaries, and other visitors expected to arrive for the Tokyo Olympics from more than 200 countries. Hundreds of fresh cases are reported every day in Tokyo. According to some experts, that number could rise to tens of thousands in the coming weeks, since the Olympic “bubble” has been shattered, with staff and athletes testing positive for the virus. On July 23, the Games will begin. The S&P 500 index lost 0.4 percent on Wall Street, with most of the businesses in the benchmark index losing ground. A large portion of the drop was accounted for by banks, industrial stocks, and industries that rely on consumer spending. Technology stocks defied the trend, helping to offset some of the market’s overall decline. Small-cap stocks suffered the brunt of the losses. The major market indexes fell slightly below their record highs achieved a day earlier as a result of the pullback. Treasury yields have increased. The S&P 500 index SPX, -0.35 percent dropped 15.42 points to 4,369.21. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.31 percent fell 0.3 percent to 34,888.79 points. The Nasdaq COMP, -0.38 percent, a tech-heavy index, fell 0.4 percent. Bond yields fell to 1.40 percent on Wednesday, down from 1.42 percent late Tuesday. After a steep jump earlier this year, yields have been moving lower. In oil trading, the New York Mercantile Exchange’s benchmark U.S. crude CLQ21, -0.47% fell 18 cents to $75.07 per barrel in electronic trading. On Tuesday, it rose $1.15 to $75.25. The worldwide benchmark, Brent crude BRNU21, -0.34 percent, slipped 12 cents to $76.37 a barrel. The United States dollar USDJPY, -0.14% slipped to 110.53 Japanese yen from 110.61 yen in currency trade./n
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