Futures contracts for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 percent.

Meanwhile, Asian markets were mostly lower. with Japan’s Nikkei 225 shedding a sliver of 0.1 percent to close at 39,208.03. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.5 percent to 16,536.85, while China’s Shanghai Composite sank 1.9 percent to 2,957.85.

Commentators pin the most recent downturn of Chinese stock markets to the news on the liquidation petition filed by Hong Kong-listed Country Garden, the largest private property developer in China, for failure to pay back a larger-than-average term loan facility. This occurred after the world’s most prominent and indebted property developer, China Evergrande, was sent into liquidation at the end of January. Any investor should be alert.

Conversely, after data showing that Australia’s inflation rate was steady at a two-year low in January and amid further evidence that the Reserve Bank might have to lower its duty rates further, Australia’s index, S&P/ASX 200, was barely moving at 7,660.40.

South Korea’s Kospi rose 1% to finish at 2,652.29 and Thailand’s SET fell 0.8%.

The S&P 500 in the US ticked a nudge higher on Tuesday. It rose 0.2%, within sight of its record closing high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% and the Nasdaq composite index climbed 0.4%.

And even though earnings reporting season for companies in the S&P 500, the main stock market index of the US is by no means done – there are still companies left in the fourth quarter – optimism and confidence prevail in the face of the strong performance of the US economy.

Despite rather weak economic news of late – most notably disappointing orders for core capital goods (durable manufactured goods, less defense and transportation) and a pullback in consumer confidence – investors remain confident that US economic resilience remains supported by its economic heart: consumption.

In commodity markets, Benchmark US crude oil futures lost 90 cents to $77.97 a barrel, while the international benchmark Brent shed 92 cents or $81.74 a barrel.

The U.S. dollar in the currency markets mounted as high as 150.76 yen from 150.51 yen on Wednesday, and the euro retreated partly from a seven-month high of $1.0843 to $1.0805.

As markets increasingly react to fresh economic data and corporate earnings, investors worry about global geopolitical accidents and new monetary policies.

Source: Associated Press, U.S.News February 28, 2024