This is CNBC’s live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Thursday, after key Wall Street indexes rose amid fresh tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.33% higher to close at 8,268.2.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded 0.3% higher to close at 38,256.17 while the Topix added 0.73% to close at 2,736.25. South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.73% to end the trading day at 2,621.75, while the small-cap Kosdaq dipped 0.07% to close at 770.85.
Shares of Japanese convenience store operator Seven & i Holdings fell over 10% after the proposed acquisition by its founding family failed to secure financing, according to a company filing. This comes after the Yomiuri newspaper reported that Seven & i has abandoned the management buyout plan, which was pegged at over 8 trillion yen ($53.69 billion).
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 0.61% while mainland China’s CSI 300 added 0.21% to close at 3,968.12.
Trump on Wednesday threatened to impose 25% tariffs on imports from the European Union. This comes on the back of the president’s declaration to go forward with tariffs on Mexico and Canada after a monthlong postponement.
Investors will be keeping an eye on Asian chip stocks after technology darling Nvidia’s fourth-quarter earnings beat Wall Street expectations. The chipmaker also provided strong guidance for the current quarter and indicated its confidence in continuing its historic run of growth fueled by artificial intelligence.
“While markets have begun to react to these developments, deep tariff risks are still being underpriced,” Goldman Sachs wrote in a note released Wednesday.
Kamakshya Trivedi, the investment bank’s head of global FX, rates and EM strategy, said that the scope for U.S. equities to fall further and a stronger move in the dollar still exists if Trump “walks the walk” on broader and bigger tariffs.
Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 eked out gains, snapping a four-day run of losses to close at 5,956.06 The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 188.04 points, or 0.43%, to end at 43,433.12. The 30-stock average was earlier up as much as 245.34 points, or about 0.6%. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.26% and ended at 19,075.26.
—CNBC’s Lim Hui Jie, Hakyung Kim and Brian Evans contributed to this report.
China likely to cut inflation outlook to two-decade low, lay out stimulus plans at ‘Two Sessions’ meet
China is expected to acknowledge a significant softening in domestic demand next week, while revealing highly anticipated details on fiscal stimulus aimed at shoring up growth in the face of heightened U.S. trade tensions.
The country’s annual parliamentary gathering, known as the “Two Sessions,” starts on Tuesday with the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference — a top advisory body — followed by the meeting of its legislature, the National People’s Congress.
The gathering has lasted for about a week in recent years and is typically followed by a press conference with the foreign minister and heads of economic departments.
Read the full story here.
—Anniek Bao, Evelyn Cheng
Seven & i shares plunge over 12% as management buyout falls through
Shares of Japan’s Seven & i Holdings plunged as much as 12.44% Thursday, after the company said the founding family had failed to secure the financing needed to buyout the convenience store operator.
Earlier on Thursday, Yomuiri newspaper reported that Seven & i had abandoned the management buyout plan, stated to be worth over 8 trillion yen ($53.69 billion).
“They [the founding family] have been unable to secure the financing required to submit a definitive proposal to acquire 7&i. As a result, there is no actionable proposal from Mr. Junro Ito and Ito-Kogyo for 7&i to consider at this time,” the company said in a filing.
Junro Ito is Seven & i’s vice president and the son of late Masatoshi Ito, founder of Seven & i. Ito-Kogyo is a company affiliated with the vice president, and is Seven & i’s second-largest stakeholder with an 8.2% stake.
Read the full story here.
— Lim Hui Jie
Nissan shares rise 3% as automaker reportedly considering to replace CEO
Nissan shares rose 3.12% as the company is planning to replace its CEO Makoto Uchida following the dissolution of merger talks with Honda and disappointing earnings, according to a Bloomberg report.
The Japanese automaker is assessing potential replacements for Uchida, the report added.
This comes as Fitch Ratings on Wednesday downgraded the Japanese automaker’s credit rating to BBB- from BB+, which also means junk status.
—Lee Ying Shan
S&P 500 closes slightly above the flatline
The S&P 500 closed Wednesday’s trading session barely in the green.
The broad market index rose just 0.01%.
Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite added 0.26%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed, falling 188.04 points, or 0.43%.
— Hakyung Kim
