TOKYO/HONG KONG/SHANGHAI/SYDNEY (dpa-AFX) – The most important Asian stock markets fell on Thursday in the wake of falling US futures. Inflation data from China also had a negative impact.
While rising inflation rates are causing concern in other currency areas, the opposite is the case in the Chinese market. December price data pointed to deflationary risks, market strategists at Deutsche Bank noted. The Chinese government’s efforts to stimulate the economy do not seem to have had much effect yet.
The stock markets reacted cautiously. The CSI 300 with the most important Chinese mainland stocks fell by 0.25 percent to 3,779.88 points, while the Hang Seng of the Chinese special administrative region of Hong Kong recently fell by 0.1 percent to 19,266.31 points.
In Australia, too, the reaction to economic data was cautious. According to market strategists at Deutsche Bank, import data for November indicates moderate demand from domestic consumers. This also applies to retail sales, which remained below expectations. The leading index S&P/ASX 200 (S&P ASX 200) fell by 0.24 percent to 8,329.17 points.
Japanese stocks also closed in the red. The leading index Nikkei 225 fell by 0.94 percent to 39,605.09 points./mf/mis