Asian Shares Decline In Thin Holiday Trade

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks fell in thin holiday trade on Tuesday. Volumes were light amid holidays in Japan and South Korea. South Korea was closed for New Year's Eve holiday, while Japanese markets remain closed from Tuesday through Jan. 6.

Markets in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Hong Kong all closed early on New Year's Eve.

The U.S. dollar was firm and looked set to close out 2024 up over 6.5 percent, marking its best performance since 2015.

Gold held steady on the last trading day of the year and was on track for its best year in a decade with a more than 26 percent increase year-to-date.

Oil traded higher in Asian trade but was set for an annual decline.

China's Shanghai Composite index tumbled 1.63 percent to 3,351.76 after official data showed China's factory activity expanded at a slower pace in December. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished marginally higher at 20,059.95.

China's manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index dropped to 50.1 in December from 50.3 in the previous month. At the same time, the non-manufacturing PMI advanced more-than-expected to 52.2 from 50.0 a month ago.

The focus also shifted to U.S.-China relations after the U.S. Treasury Department said that a China state-sponsored actor was behind a cyber breach resulting in access to some of its workstations.

Australian markets ended the last trading day of the year on a weak note, with banks, miners and discretionary consumer firms leading losses.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.92 percent to 8,159.10, marking its lowest close since Dec. 20. The broader All Ordinaries index settled 0.89 percent lower at 8,420.50.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index dropped 1.20 percent to 13,110.74.

U.S. stocks ended lower for a third day running overnight due to end-of-year tax positioning and concerns over valuations.

In economic news, factory sector activity in the Chicago area slowed a bit more quickly at the end tail-end of 2024, while pending home sales increased for a fourth month to reach a 21-month high in November, separate reports showed.

The Dow lost 1 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.2 percent and the S&P 500 gave up 1.1 percent.