Tokyo : Asian shares were mostly lower Tuesday in quiet trading after US markets were closed for Presidents Day. Shares dropped in Tokyo, Sydney and Hong Kong but rose in Seoul and Shanghai. Analysts say worries about a slowdown and weakening demand persist in Asia, as companies cope with rising energy and raw material costs and consumers hold back on spending.
In Japan, a preliminary manufacturing indicator, the flash purchasing manager's index, fell to 47.4 in February from 48.9 the month before. That was the weakest reading in more than two years. The latest data from Australia, called the Judo Bank PMI, showed private sector activity remained in contraction for the fifth straight month. Although exports rebounded with help from China's re-opening after it dropped COVID-related restrictions, the sector showed little to no positive momentum. Unemployment has also risen in Australia. The distortions in the Australian economy remain extreme and point only to recession, Clifford Bennett, chief economist at ACY Securities, said in a commentary.
Tokyo's benchmark, the Nikkei 225, shed 0.3 per cent in morning trading to 27,461.38. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.5 per cent to 7,316.00. South Korea's gained 0.1 per cent to 2,457.83. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dipped 0.6 per cent to 20,768.85, while the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.5 per cent to 3,305.86. Analysts said worries about a slowdown and weakening demand persist as companies cope with rising energy and raw material costs and consumers hold back on spending.