BANGKOK – Shares were mostly lower Wednesday in Asia after a rare quiet day on Wall Street and in other global financial markets.
U.S. futures and oil prices also fell.
Chip maker Nvidia saw a 6.3% drop in its shares during after-hours trading following the announcement of stricter export controls on one of its computer chips meant for artificial intelligence use by the U.S.
Chinese stocks led the decline in the region after reports from the Chinese government indicated a robust 5.4% annual growth rate for the second-largest economy globally. This growth was supported by strong performances in industrial production, retail sales, and exports. However, in quarterly terms, growth decelerated from 1.6% in the previous quarter of 2024 to 1.2% in January-March.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.5% to 20,922.54, while the Shanghai Composite index gave up 0.9% to 3,237.60.
Private sector economists have adjusted their forecasts downward as a consequence of recent events. President Donald Trump’s decision to escalate tariffs on most Chinese imports to 145% has prompted these revisions. In response, China has retaliated by increasing its duties on U.S. imports to 125%.
Analysts at ANZ Research said activity in the current quarter is already weakening.
“Our view is that the tariff shock is caused by the unpredictability rather than the tariff itself. President Trump’s announcements have affected business sentiment and activity,” Raymond Yeung and other ANZ researchers said in a report after the China data was released.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index shed 0.9% to 22,948.18.
South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.7% to 2,461.45, while in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.3% to 7,781.10.
India’s Sensex was little changed and Bangkok’s SET rose 0.2%.
On Tuesday, U.S. stocks drifted, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.2% to 5,396.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4% to 40,368.96, and the Nasdaq composite edged less than 0.1% lower to 16,823.17.
Uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariffs kept investors watching to see what comes next.
The U.S. bond market appeared to calm after its sudden and sharp moves last week shook confidence in the status of U.S. government bonds as a safe haven against risks.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury was steady at 4.33%, down from 4.38% late Monday and 4.48% at the end of last week. A week earlier it had been at just 4.01%. Yields usually drop when investors are jittery, so this week’s moves have offered reassurance.
The value of the U.S. dollar also steadied after tumbling last week, raising more worries that Trump’s trade war also may be undermining its status as a safe-haven investment.
DaVita sank 3% for a second straight drop after it said a ransomware attack is affecting some of its operations. The health care company said it’s still investigating the attack, which it learned about Saturday, and that it can’t yet know the “full scope, nature, and potential ultimate impact.”
On the winning side of Wall Street was Bank of America, which climbed 3.6% after the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.
Most big U.S. banks have been reporting strong results for the start of the year, boosted by their stock trading desks taking advantage of all the huge swings caused by Trump’s on-again-off-again tariff announcements. Citigroup also topped analysts’ expectations, and its stock rose 1.8%.
Palantir Technologies climbed 6.2% for a second day of gains after NATO said it would use the company’s artificial-intelligence capabilities in its allied command operations.
In other dealings early Wednesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 19 cents to $61.14 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, fell 18 cents to $64.49 per barrel.
Trump’s tariffs have raised expectations that economies will slow, denting demand for oil and other resources.
The U.S. dollar fell to 142.61 Japanese yen from 143.24 yen. The euro rose to $1.1336 from $1.1283.
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AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.
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