On Tuesday morning (2 September, 9:26 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in Asia Pacific traded mixed as investors weighed the impact of ongoing tariff disputes and diplomatic developments, with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit adding to the cautious mood. Regional economic indicators, including South Korea’s inflation figures and Australia’s current account data, also attracted attention.
In South Korea, the nation’s consumer prices climbed 1.7% year-on-year in August, easing from a 2.1% increase in July and undershooting the 2% growth anticipated by economists surveyed by Reuters. This marks the slowest annual inflation pace since November.
Australia recorded a current account deficit of 13.7 billion Australian dollars ($8.97 billion) for the April to June quarter, improving from the 14.7 billion dollar shortfall reported previously and coming in smaller than the 16 billion dollar deficit expected by economists surveyed by Reuters.
U.S. President Donald Trump stated that India has proposed eliminating tariffs on American goods to zero, though he criticized the timing as overdue. His remarks came as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with Chinese and Russian leaders, was in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit during heightened trade tensions with Washington.
Meanwhile, the U.S. stock markets were closed on Monday due to the Labor Day public holiday.
Japan’s NIKKEI rose by 0.24% to 42,290.05. South Korea’s KOSPI grew by 0.72% to 3,165.5, while Australia’s ASX 200 dipped by 0.07% to 8,921.6.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC declined by 0.32% to 3,863.14. Shenzhen’s SZI fell by 0.8% to 12,726.79, while Hong Kong’s HSI surged by 0.18% to 25,663.88.
As for commodities, oil prices increased on Monday, buoyed by heightened concerns over potential supply disruptions amid escalating airstrikes between Russia and Ukraine, alongside support from a weakening U.S. dollar. Brent futures closed up 67 cents or 1% at $68.15 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 67 cents, or 1.1%, to $64.68 by 2:15 PM ET.
Due to the Labor Day holiday in the United States, there was no official settlement for WTI futures on Monday, and trading activity for both Brent and WTI remained subdued as a result.
This morning, Brent futures added 30 cents or 0.44% to $68.45 a barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained 93 cents or 1.45% to $64.94 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures soared by 1.33% to $3,562.7 per Troy ounce.
