Asian markets fall after the last record on Wall Street

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

BEIJING – Asian stock markets fell on Friday after Wall Street hit a new high in optimism over the economic development of the economic stimulus and coronavirus vaccine, despite rising unemployment in the US.

Stocks in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul retreated.

Overnight, the S&P 500 benchmark on Wall Street gained for the third day with optimism about Washington’s progress toward a new economic aid package, while the government reported the highest level of new jobless claims from the last three months.

Market action has suggested that investors see “bad data as good news” for progress toward a stimulus, Mizuho Bank said in a report.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 lost 0.2%, while the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.7%.

Kospi in Seoul rose 0.2% and the S & P / ASX 200 in Sydney fell 0.7%. New Zealand Singapore and Indonesia also withdrew, while stocks rose in Taiwan

Investors were waiting, before the US presidential election on November 3, for lawmakers to agree on new aid to replace expiring unemployment benefits. This loss of revenue decreases consumer spending that fuels the largest global economy and the demand for imports from Asia and other suppliers.

The Department of Labor reported that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose to 885,000 last week, the highest level since September.

Progress in the development and distribution of coronavirus vaccines has helped support the optimism that the US economy could begin to recover next year.

Democrats and Republicans in Congress are locked in a divided party line struggle over the size and scope of an aid package at a time when the economy is showing fresh signs of stagnation due to pandemic pressure.

Despite this, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% on Thursday to 3,722.48. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.5% to 30,303.37. Nasdaq added 0.8% to 12,764.75.

Investors received more encouragement from the Federal Reserve, which helped strengthen markets at the start of the pandemic.

The central bank has again pledged to continue buying bonds until the economy makes substantial progress. However, the Fed said it can do so much to get over the economy and that more financial support from Washington is key to continued recovery.

In the energy markets, US benchmark oil lost 13 cents to $ 48.23 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It rose 54 cents to $ 48.36 on Thursday. Brent set the price standard for international oils, falling 21 cents to $ 51.29 a barrel in London. The contract increased by 42 cents in the previous session to $ 51.50.

The dollar gained 103.36 yen from 103.11 yen on Thursday.