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Stock Market
3 Jan 2022
Thin-Trade Causes Mixed Asian Stocks as Some Markets Remain Closed
The Index Today
Monday morning, Asia Pacific stocks were seen mixed due to thin-trade on the first trading day of the year 2022 for some markets.
Trading data shows that South Korea’s KOSPI was up 0.37% by 9:58 PM ET (2:58 AM GMT). Data released earlier in the day showed that the Nikkei manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) for December was 51.9, higher than the previous month’s 50.9. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.28%, while Chinese, Australian, and Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. There will be no cash trading of U.S. Treasuries in Asia on Monday.
Jun Rong Yeap, market strategist at IG Asia said that trader “sentiments may attempt to ride on the Santa Claus rally to deliver a positive start for the first trading day in 2022.”
“While the rising omicron COVID spreads may warrant a cautious approach toward reopening, some expectations may be that improved vaccinations will aid to limit the eventual economic impact,” he added.
COVID outbreaks due to Omicron continue in countries from China to the U.S., with the global number of cases topping 290 million as of Jan. 3, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
©Photo: REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo
