Asian stocks rise as inflation data looms, Chinese markets decline

Asian stocks rose on Tuesday as investors focused on upcoming US inflation data, which could influence interest rate cuts. Wall Street’s overnight recovery boosted most regional markets, while Chinese stocks fell due to new US restrictions on biotechnology firms, sending the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indexes to a seven-month low.

The US House of Representatives passed a bill targeting Chinese biotech companies, leading to a 9 per cent drop in WuXi AppTec and a 6 per cent decline in Hansoh Pharmaceutical. This deepened concerns over worsening Sino-US relations. Economic data from August also weighed on Chinese markets.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 and TOPIX gained 0.2 per cent and 0.8 per cent, while Australia’s ASX 200 climbed 0.6 per cent despite weaker consumer sentiment. Investors closely watched consumer price index data expected on Wednesday, ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting where officials are likely to cut interest rates.

Attribution: Investing

Subediting: M. S. Salama