Asian Equities Open Lower

Asian stock markets opened lower on the first trading day of the second quarter, following a weak close on Wall Street overnight.

Cautious sentiment also prevailed after a weaker-than-expected reading of sentiment among Japanese corporates. The headline big manufacturers index remained unchanged from the previous quarter at +12, below expectations for a reading of +14 in a Reuters poll, the Bank of Japan’s Tankan survey showed on Wednesday.

Wednesday also sees the release of China’s official March manufacturing purchasing manager’s index (PMI), alongside HSBC’s final reading. A preliminary reading last week showed PMI sliding to an 11-month low due to shrinking new orders, so expectations for the final readings are low.

CNBC

Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.