Asian stocks mixed after wobbly trading on Wall Street

Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press</span>
Published Tuesday, November 27, 2018 11:42PM EST

TOKYO -- Asian shares were mixed Wednesday after a wobbly day of trading on Wall Street, and uncertainty loomed as investors looked toward the G-20 meeting of world leaders later in the week.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.9 per cent in morning trading to 22,140.95, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged down 0.2 per cent to 5,717.50. South Korea's Kospi was little changed, inching down to 2,098.23. Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.6 per cent to 26,498.33, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.3 per cent to 2,581.64. Southeast Asian benchmarks were also mixed, with shares down in the Philippines but higher in Indonesia.

WALL STREET: The S&P 500 index rose 8.72 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 2,682.17. The index jumped 1.6 per cent Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 108.49 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 24,748.73. The Nasdaq composite inched up 0.85 points to 7,082.80 after surging 2.1 per cent a day earlier.

EYES ON G-20: World leaders are arriving in Buenos Aires for this week's G-20 summit, where a variety of issues are gaining attention, from trade worries to the presence of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. His possible involvement is under scrutiny in the slaying of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

TRADE WORRIES: Worries remain about pan-Pacific trade tensions, which could hurt Asian economic growth. President Donald Trump told the Wall Street Journal this week he expects to raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports on Jan. 1. His administration recently imposed a 10 per cent tax on those imports, and at the start of the year that's scheduled to rise to 25 per cent. Trump has also threatened to place tariffs on all remaining U.S. imports from China.

THE QUOTE: "Traders had been hoping that we would have seen an improved tone between the two powers by now," said Fiona Cincotta, senior market analyst at City Index, about U.S.-China talks. "Any market optimism of easing trade tensions is misplaced."

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 33 cents to $51.80 per barrel. It fell 0.1 per cent to $51.56 a barrel in New York Tuesday. Brent crude, the international standard, added 34 cents to $60.74 a barrel.

CURRENCIES: The dollar edged up to 113.80 yen from 113.48 yen late Tuesday in Asia. The euro felt to $1.1292 from $1.1340.

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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay contributed to this report.

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