Pedestrians cross an intersection in Shibuya district, Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, February 6, 2024.
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Asia-Pacific markets continue Sell-off on Friday as investors await key trade data from China and Taiwan this week, as well as central bank decisions from Australia and India.
Japan’s markets led the declines in the region as the Nikkei 225 and Topix fell as much as 7% in volatile trading. Major trading houses such as Mitsubishi, Mitsui and Co., Sumitomo And Marubeni All are down about 10%.
At this level, both the Nikkei and Topix are approaching bear market territory, down nearly 20% from their all-time highs on July 11.
Monday’s decline followed Friday’s collapse as Japan Nikkei 225 and Topix fell more than 5% and 6%, respectively. Broader Topix records worst day in eight yearswhile the Nikkei recorded its worst day since March 2020.
At the start of trading on Monday, quiet also rose to its highest against the dollar since January and was last trading at 144.97.
On Monday, S&P Global will release service sector activity figures for countries in the region, including India and China.
Taiwan’s benchmark index, the Taiex, fell nearly 8%, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 down 2.84%.
The Reserve Bank of Australia begins its two-day monetary policy meeting on Monday. Economists polled by Reuters expect the central bank to keep interest rates on hold at 4.35%, but markets will be watching the monetary policy statement for clarity on whether the RBA is still considering raising rates.
Korea Kospi down 4.38%, while Kosdaq fell 4.63%.
Hong Kong Hang Seng Index saw the smallest decline in Asia, down 0.22%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 edged up slightly, the only major index in positive territory.
On Friday in the United States, stocks fell sharply Weaker-than-expected jobs report in July raised concerns that the economy could fall into recession.
The Nasdaq was the first of the three major benchmarks to enter correction territory, down more than 10% from its record high. The S&P 500 and Dow are down 5.7% and 3.9%, respectively, from their all-time highs.
The S&P 500 down 1.84%, while Nasdaq Composite lost 2.43%. Dow Jones Industrial Average down 610.71 points, equivalent to 1.51%.
—CNBC’s Pia Singh and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.
