Asian Stocks Wobble As Investors Parse U.S. Jobs Data

Asian stock markets sank Friday after Wall Street rose to a high as investors waited for US jobs data for an update on how coronavirus flareups are affecting the world’s biggest economy, Joe McDonald reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: The Shanghai Stock Exchange

Shanghai, Hong Kong and South Korea retreated. Tokyo was up less than 0.1%. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index gained after investors were encouraged Thursday by a decline in US unemployment claims.

They were watching for Friday’s monthly employment report for an indication of how new disease flareups and renewed anti-disease curbs might be affecting hiring and wages.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 4,429.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8% to 35,064.25. The Nasdaq climbed 0.8% to 14,895.12.

The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6% to 3,444.19 while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 0.4% to 26,093.53. Chinese stocks have been hurt by a spate of anti-monopoly and data security campaigns launched by Beijing against tech companies.

The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo added less than 0.1% to 27,744.24 after Japanese labor cash earnings edged lower in June for the first time in four months. The Kospi in Seoul lost 0.3% to 3,265.92 and the ASX-S&P 200 in Sydney was little-changed at 7,510.90. New Zealand declined while Singapore and Indonesia advanced.

Tech, retailing and consumer stocks rose. Banks gained as bond yields rose, giving them room to charge more for loans. Health care and materials stocks fell.

On Thursday, the Labor Department reported last week’s unemployment claims fell by 14,000, adding to hopes for recovery in the labor market.

That followed a weak report from payroll processor ADP on Wednesday showing the private sector added jobs at a slower pace than expected in July.

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