SINGAPORE – Shares in Asia-Pacific were mostly higher on Tuesday as South Korea’s gross domestic product beat estimates.
The Kospi in South Korea recovered from losses to rise 0.43%, while the Kosdaq gained 0.11%.
South Korea’s economy grew by 0.7% in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of 2022, according to estimates released by the Bank of Korea.
That compares with 0.4 percent growth expected by analysts in a Reuters poll. The country’s GDP grew by 0.6% in the quarter from January to March.
“This morning’s impression actually gives the [Bank of Korea] more room to pursue their policy priority of controlling inflation and inflation expectations before worrying about growth,” Kathleen Oh, an economist at Bank of America Securities, said on Tuesday.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced 0.65%, with Alibaba up 4.12%.
Alibaba said on Tuesday will apply for a primary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, where its shares are already trading, according to a press release. If completed, the company will become a dual-principal listed company in Hong Kong and New York. This is expected to happen before the end of 2022.
Shares in mainland China also rose. The Shanghai composite rose 0.11%, while the Shenzhen component rose 0.16%.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was slightly higher.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 bucked the trend, falling 0.28%. The Topix index was close to the flat line.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.25%.
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The Bank of Japan released the minutes of its June meeting on Tuesday, after keeping interest rates at very low levels last week.
Members of the BOJ’s policy council said the economy was on track to recover from the effects of Covid, but still needed strong financial support due to pressure from rising commodity prices.
“They also agreed that it was necessary to pay due attention to developments in financial and foreign exchange markets and their impact on economic activity and prices in Japan,” the minutes said.
The Japanese yen has weakened as the country’s monetary policy diverges from that of the Fed and much of the developed world.
The Japanese yen was trading at 136.32 per dollar, stronger than last week’s levels.
Overnight in the US, the S&P 500 gained 0.1% to close at 3,966.84. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 90.75 points, or 0.3%, to 31,990.04. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4% to 11,782.67.
Coins and oil
The Australian dollar was at $0.6978.
The Aussie tracked higher in line with higher commodity prices but is expected to trade in a tight range ahead of Wednesday’s inflation data report, wrote Joseph Capurso, chief of international economics at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, in a note on Tuesday.
Oil futures rose in Asian trade. US crude rose 0.63% to $97.31 a barrel, while Brent crude rose 0.74% to $105.93 a barrel.
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