Asian Stocks
Stocks in Asia were mostly trading lower on Friday on the increased tensions in Ukraine, while the markets in Australia and Shanghai were seen trading with slight gains. Meanwhile, data on the US pending home sales and the revised US gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter supported the market slightly.
Japan
The Japanese Nikkei 225 index slumped 0.49% lower to trade at 15,384.19 points, while the Tokyo Topix index slid 0.32% to 1,276.66 points. Shares for the Japanese multinational cooperation Pioneer fell 2.7%, while Casio Computer lost 2%. On the upside, Softbank went up by 1.9%.
Meanwhile, fresh data released earlier showed that the nation’s unemployment rate rose to 3.8% in July, the highest in nine months, compared to a forecasted 3.7%. Household spending slumped 5.9% year-on-year in July, falling more than the forecasted 3.0% fall. Retail sales edged 0.5% lower in July, compared to the forecasted 0.3% rise made by analysts.
Industrial production rose slightly by 0.2% in June, compared to the projected 0.1% rise. The Japanese yen remained a little-changed against its major counterparts, trading around 103.7 yen against the greenback.
China
Hong Kong Hang Seng index fell 0.10% to trade at 24,715.25 points, while the Chinese mainland Shanghai Composite rose 0.12% to 2,198.33 points at the time of writing.
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Aluminum Cooperation of China slid 4.1% to HK$3.31 after reporting a fall of 4.12 billion yuan in its first half figures. While CSPC Pharmaceutical slid by 7% to HK$6.39.
The South Korean Kospi index came in at 0.37% to 2,067.98 points at the time of writing.
Australia
In Sydney, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index gained 0.08% to 5,629.10 points at the time of writing.
National airline carrier Qantas saw major gains in the previous session and added 6% on Friday. Among shares that rose in Australia, the National Bank of Australia gained 1.2%. Rio Tinto, the world’s mining giants slid by more than 1% after most metal prices declined overnight.
Ukraine
The violence in Ukraine continues to escalate after the Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk pleaded for international help in defending the Russian army, as Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko pledged to increase the country’s defense after reports of Russian troops in the country.
As Russia denies any involvement in the conflict, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the French President Francois Hollande said they would impose additional sanctions.
US
According to recent reports released, the world’s largest economy expanded more than forecasted in the second quarter. The US gross domestic product (GDP) climbed 4.2% at an annualized rate, compared to the previous forecast of 4%.
European Stocks
European stocks were seen opening higher on Friday after the previous session’s losses hit by worries over the ongoing crises in Ukraine.
The European Euro Stoxx 50 added 0.42% to open at 3,175.50, while the German DAX rose 0.22% opening at 9,483.60 at the time of writing.
The French CAC 40 edged 0.34% higher to 4,381.00, while UK’s benchmark FTSE gained 0.19% to 6,818.80.
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