On Friday morning (4 July, 9:13 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), indices in Asia Pacific traded mixed following optimism from Wall Street’s rally—sparked by U.S. employment data that surpassed forecasts. The data helped calm fears about an economic deceleration in the United States.
U.S. job growth exceeded forecasts in June, with nonfarm payrolls rising by 147,000 thanks to strong government hiring. The figures surpassed the expected 110,000 and followed an upwardly revised 144,000 in May. Moreover, April’s tally was also revised higher to 158,000.
Following these, the stronger data may prompt the Federal Reserve to delay any interest rate cuts.
Japan’s NIKKEI rose by 0.16% to 39,848.99. Australia’s ASX 200 grew by 0.19% to 8,612.5, while South Korea’s KOSPI dropped by 1.05% to 3,083.61.
As for stocks in China, Hong Kong’s HSI slumped by 1.4% to 23,733.23. Shenzhen’s SZI slid by 0.32% to 10,500.56, while Shanghai’s SSEC climbed by 0.01% to 3,461.33.
The U.S. stock markets edged up on Thursday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.77% to 44,828.53. NASDAQ expanded by 1.02% to 20,601.1, and S&P 500 added 0.83% to 6,279.35. VIX plummeted by 1.56% to 16.38.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Thursday as concerns grew that U.S. tariffs might dampen energy demand amid anticipations on OPEC+ to approve a production increase during its policy meeting this weekend. Brent futures declined 31 cents or 0.45% to $68.80 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) lost 45 cents or 0.67% to $67 per barrel.
This morning, Brent futures fell 22 cents or 0.32% to $68.58 a barrel, and the WTI futures dipped 13 cents or 0.19% to $66.87 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures contracted by 0.07% to $3,340.6 per Troy ounce.
