Asia markets wary as investors brace for barrage of executive orders from Trump 2.0

DONALD Trump is raring to go, and he has got the world watching and wondering which way to turn.

In Asia, investors adopted a cautious stance on Monday (Jan 20), ahead of the inauguration of Trump as US president, after markets closed in the region.

China and Hong Kong stocks climbed as Trump’s call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday helped to ease some worries over simmering Sino-US tensions.

China’s blue-chip CSI 300 Index rose 0.5 per cent, adding to the 2.1 per cent gain seen last week, while Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index jumped 1.8 per cent to a three-week high.

This helped to buoy performance across Asian markets, but trading volumes remained relatively thin. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.2 per cent. At home, the Straits Times Index ended 0.1 per cent lower at 3,807.97 points.