Asian Shares Slide As China Deflation Pressure Deepens

(RTTNews) - Most Asian stocks fell on Thursday as investors reacted to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's tariff threats, a buoyant dollar and disappointing Chinese inflation data.

The U.S. dollar was underpinned by rising Treasury yields amid expectations that Trump's fiscal and tariff policies may add to price pressures and keep U.S. interest rates higher for longer.

Gold ticked higher in Asian trade after hitting a near four-week high in the previous session.

After Wednesday's private employment data painted a weaker picture of the economy, the focus has now shifted the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report due on Friday that may provide greater clarity on the Federal Reserve's interest rate path for 2025.

Oil edged up slightly after falling more than 1 percent on Wednesday.

China's Shanghai Composite index dipped 0.58 percent to 3,211.39 as the latest inflation data pointed to persistent deflationary pressures in the world's second-largest economy. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index eased 0.20 percent to 19,240.89.

Data showed today that China's consumer inflation remained near zero in December, while producer prices continued to slide despite Beijing initiating stimulus measures to revive domestic demand.

Japanese markets fell sharply after data showed Japanese workers' base salaries saw their largest increase in 32 years, potentially paving the way for the central bank to raise interest rates this month.

The Nikkei average fell 0.94 percent to 39,605.09 while the broader Topix index settled 1.23 percent lower at 2,735.92.

Tech stocks such as Advantest and Tokyo Electron lost around 2 percent after reports suggested the Biden administration plans one additional round of restrictions on the export of artificial intelligence chips.

Seoul stocks ended little changed after a choppy session. The Kospi average finished marginally higher at 2,521.90, extending gains for a fifth straight session amid foreign buying.

Chipmaker SK Hynix jumped 5.3 percent while market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 2.1 percent.

Australian markets ended slightly lower to snap a five-day winning streak. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.24 percent to 8,329.20, dragged down by miners, financials and energy stocks.

Gold miners surged as bullion prices hit a near four-week high. Northern Star Resources rallied 2.9 percent and Evolution Mining added 2 percent. The broader All Ordinaries index settled 0.25 percent lower at 8,577.80.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.76 percent to 12,943.74, extending losses to a third consecutive session.

U.S. stocks ended narrowly mixed overnight after the release of mixed jobs data. The ADP private sector employment report showed fewer jobs were added in December than economists had anticipated.

Separate data revealed that jobless claims for the previous week unexpectedly fell to their lowest level in almost eleven months.

The minutes from the Fed's December meeting revealed that officials expect slower rate cuts in 2025 and remain worried about the inflation impacts from Trump's policies.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished marginally lower while the Dow rose 0.3 percent and the S&P 500 added 0.2 percent.

U.S. markets will remain shut today in observance of a National Day of Mourning for former President Jimmy Carter.