Asia report: Stocks follow Wall St into the red as rising bond yields weigh

30th May 2024 07:54

(Sharecast News) - Asian share markets tumbled on Thursday, following a weak showing on Wall Street as Shares retreated Thursday in Asia after U.S. stocks slumped in response to higher bond yields as investors bet on a delay in interest rate cuts due to sticky inflation.

Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark fell 1.3% to 38,054 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong declined 1.55% to 18,190.

The Shanghai Composite index was down 0.73% to 3,088, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.49% to 7,628 and South Korea's Kospi in Seoul slumped 1.56% to 2,635.

US markets all fell overnight as a jump in longer-term treasury yields also weighed on sentiment. The 10-year yield rose to 4.61% from 4.54% late Tuesday following an auction of $44bn in seven-year treasury bonds.

Investors will now turn their attention to US core personal consumption expenditures data, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure for inflation, which is due on Friday.

In equity news, shares in Australian miners were lower after sector giant BHP walked away from its £38.6bn plan to take over rival Anglo American.

BHP said that while it believed that its takeover bid was "a compelling opportunity to effectively grow the pie of value for both sets of shareholders," it was unable to reach agreement with Anglo, specifically in respect of South African regulatory risk and cost.

The Australian firm had made two earlier offers at £31.1bn in April, and £34bn on May 14.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com