Asian stocks plunged on Tuesday after a sluggish day on Wall Street as investors waited to see if Congress could break a lockjam in providing additional assistance to people, businesses and local governments affected by the corona virus outbreak.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Index fell after Prime Minister Yoshihide Suka announced it was halting a travel promotion program, which helped businesses, but is believed to have helped the Corona virus outbreak resurface.
The project was suspended from December 28 to January. 11, basically the whole New Year’s Eve, when most families go on vacation or to their hometowns. The Go to Travel program, also known as the Go to Eat, offered drastic discounts on mainly hotel rooms and dining, and helped reduce losses from incoming overseas tourism due to epidemic-related restrictions and concerns.
On Tuesday, the Chinese government released monthly figures showing that investments in retail, industrial production and industrial equipment and other fixed assets were higher than expected in November. However, the Shanghai Composite Index is down 0.4% at 3,356.11.
The retreat of Wall Street was also observed by other regional definitions. Hong Kong ‘s Hong Kong was down 0.5% at 26,252.50 and the Tokyo Nikkei 225 was down 0.3% at 26,648.83. South Korea’s Gosby lost 0.5% to 2,750.85 and the S&P / ASX 200 was down 0.4% to 6,635.00.
Extending its decline from recent monthly gains, the S&P 500 was down 0.4% at 3,647.49 on Monday. This is its fourth straight decline, the first since September. Losses in the financial, industrial and healthcare sectors led to reversals, more than the gains of companies that relied on technology stocks and consumer spending.
Treasury yields were often high, a sign of optimism in the economy. However, the yield of the 10-year treasury on Tuesday fell to 0.89 per cent from 0.90 per cent in late Monday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6% at 29,861.55. The Nasdaq was up 0.5% at 12,440.04. As the Russell 2000 index rose 2.16 points, or 0.1%, to 1,913.86, smaller companies outperformed their larger competitors.
Americans began receiving the country’s first vaccine against COVID-19 on Monday, which is expected to last several months.
Health workers and nursing home residents are at the forefront of these scenarios, and it is hoped that next year’s widespread outbreak will help control the epidemic and bring the economy back to normal following this year’s catastrophe.
Corona virus numbers seen last week in a worse-than-expected report on unemployment are slowing the economy. Rising deaths are prompting governments to reclaim different controls over companies. They scare customers away from businesses.
Attempts to provide another round of financial support to the US economy have been halted by bitter discrimination. Washington’s top negotiators on Monday pursued a long-delayed agreement on COVID-19 relief, but the rank and file and Democrats appeared to be increasingly resigning, now that governments have been pushed out of balance by measured demands for financial relief for states and locals.
“Again, we feel like we are stuck in a negative feedback loop,” Axi’s Stephen Innes said in a comment. “If policymakers do not overestimate market expectations, especially at this time of year, our risk-taking profits will lead to profits. It seems that viral-related economic restrictions will never (continuously) close that barrier and reduce weight.”
Even without another round of stimulus, investors face a strong environment next year that will include lower inflation and lower interest rates.
Meanwhile, hopes have been raised for the progress of a possible agreement on the terms of the UK exit from the EU.
Michael Barnier, EU chief negotiator He believes on Monday that a trade deal is possible following nine months of negotiations, and now the remaining conflicts have been reduced to two. Both sides are still stuck on the brink of an uncontested departure. They have pledged a final push before January 1, as Britain’s interim term ends on January 31.
Elsewhere, US crude traded 23 cents lower at $ 46.76 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was up 42 cents to $ 46.99 a barrel on Monday.
International standard Brent crude was $ 50.13, 16 cents a barrel.
The US dollar rose to 104.07 Japanese yen from 104.06 yen late on Monday. The euro strengthened from $ 1.2145 to 16 1.2162.
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AP business writers Stan Cho, Alex Viga and Damien J. Trois contributed.
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