(Bloomberg) -- Asian equities fell, led by financial and technology stocks, ahead of the release of U.S. jobs data later Friday.
The MSCI AC Asia Pacific Index lost 0.7 percent to 152.81 as of 4:20 p.m. in Hong Kong, heading toward its steepest weekly loss since March. Australia's megabanks were among the biggest drags on the gauge and the S&P/ASX 200 Index declined most among Asian markets. Japan's Canon Inc. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. also weighed down the regional benchmark.
The drop followed a similar move in the U.S., as investors weighed a more hawkish tone from central banks across the world. Bonds across the region joined the retreat that pushed German yields to 18-month highs. The combination of high valuations, strong year-to-date gains and a tightening in “macroliquidity” is bad for stocks, according to Bocom International Holdings Co.
“The market is showing some signs of stress,” said Hao Hong, chief strategist at Bocom in Hong Kong. “The incentive to take profit is actually quite high.”
Investors will get more clarity on the world's largest economy later on Friday, when American non-farm payrolls data are released. The ADP Research Institute said Thursday that U.S. private payrolls rose by 158,000 in June, below estimates of 188,000.
Summary
- Topix index -0.5%, Nikkei 225 Index -0.3%
- Japan Stocks Drop Amid Concerns Over U.S. Jobs Data; Yen Falls
- Hang Seng Index -0.5%, Hang Seng China Enterprises Index -0.9% and Shanghai Composite Index +0.2%, Taiex -0.7%
- Hong Kong Stocks Retreat as China Unicom, Financial Firms Slide
- Chinese Bank Giants Lose $16b in a Week on Share Rout
- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index -1%, New Zealand's NZX 50 -0.1%
- ASX 200's 2H Gain to Outpace 1H But Lag Year Ago, UBS Says
- Kospi Index -0.3%, Kospi 200 Index -0.4%
- South Korean Insurers Rise; Yuanta Sees Expectation of Rate Hike
- Straits Times Index -0.1%, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index -0.6%, Philippine Stock Exchange PSEi Index little changed, Jakarta Composite Index -0.4%, Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh Stock Index -0.9%
- India's Sensex Index, NSE Nifty 50 Index little changed
- India Drugmakers Rise as Dr. Reddy Sees Lower Pricing Pressure
To contact the reporter on this story: Livia Yap in Singapore at lyap14@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Divya Balji at dbalji1@bloomberg.net, Margo Towie
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