SINGAPORE – Asia Pacific stocks were mostly higher in Tuesday’s trading as investors reacted to the release of China’s June trading data.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index led the region’s gains as it rose 1.85%. In mainland China, the Shanghai composite rose 0.22% while the Shenzhen component lost 0.206%.
China’s exports rose 32.2% yoy in June, customs data on Tuesday showed. That was much higher than an analyst forecast in a Reuters poll for export growth of 23.1% for June.
The data also showed that Chinese imports rose 36.7% in June. According to Reuters, imports are up 30% compared to an estimate.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.78% while the Topix index rose 0.77%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.74%.
Australian stocks rose as the S & P / ASX 200 rose 0.23%.
MSCI’s broadest index for Asia Pacific stocks outside of Japan traded 1.11% higher.
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Overnight in the States, the major indices on Wall Street rose to record closing highs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 126.02 points to 34,996.18 while the S&P 500 rose 0.35% to 4,384.63. The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.21% to 14,733.24.
Currencies and oil
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback versus a basket of its competitors, stood at 92.149 as it struggled to return to levels above 92.7 hit last week.
The Japanese yen was trading at 110.37 per dollar, still weaker than levels below 110 seen against the greenback last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.75, up $ 0.745 from yesterday’s level.
Oil prices were higher on the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude oil futures rising 0.23% to $ 75.33 a barrel. US crude oil futures rose 0.27% to $ 74.30 a barrel.
