(Bloomberg) — Stocks in Asia edged lower as a dearth of local drivers kept traders in wait mode until Nvidia Corp.’s results. The dollar and US Treasuries were steady.
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The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dipped 0.3%, paring its near 1% advance in the previous session. Shares in Japan and Australia fell, while those in mainland China and Hong Kong traded mixed. US contracts climbed after Wall Street benchmarks closed higher, reversing earlier losses driven by an escalation in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Asia’s tech-heavy markets are looking to Nvidia to see if the world’s most valuable company can continue its remarkable run fueled by spending on artificial intelligence hardware. The chipmaker rose 4.9% on Tuesday. Bloomberg’s dollar gauge was little changed after a three-day drop, suggesting a rally inspired by Donald Trump’s election win may have plateaued.
“It seems like there is a lack of catalysts,” said Ken Wong, an Asian equity portfolio specialist at Eastspring Investments. “We’re off two-year highs for the Dollar Index which might give some momentum for Asia stocks, especially if we can see further downward movements of the index.”
Chinese banks kept their benchmark lending rates unchanged, in line with expectations.
In Asia’s corporate news, Tokyo Gas Co. shares jumped the most since 1987 after Elliott Investment Management said it now held a major stake in the company. Seven & i also surged after a report the founding family of the retail giant is looking to complete a deal to take the company private by the end of its fiscal year in February.
Shares of HKBN Ltd. rose as much as 15% on news that China Mobile is in talks on a potential acquisition of the Hong Kong broadband provider.
Elsewhere in Asia, Indonesia’s central bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold later in the day.
In the US session, the S&P 500 added 0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.7%. A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps advanced 1.7%. US 10-year yields slid two basis points to 4.40%.
President-elect Donald Trump announced he was tapping Cantor Fitzgerald LP Chief Executive Officer Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department, a key role in facilitating Trump’s tariff and trade policies.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin set another all-time high, supported by a series of developments highlighting the deepening embrace of the digital-asset industry in the US under crypto cheerleader Trump.