Asian stocks rise with inflation in focus; China dips on US jitters

Investing.com-- Most Asian stocks rose on Tuesday tracking an overnight rebound in Wall Street as investors looked to upcoming inflation data for more cues on interest rate cuts.

Chinese markets lagged their regional peers after U.S. policymakers passed a bill aimed at rolling out fresh restrictions on several Chinese biotechnology companies. Chinese stocks were also hit by a slew of middling economic cues over the past week.

Other Asian markets were encouraged by overnight gains on Wall Street, as U.S. stocks recovered some measure of bruising losses clocked last week. Focus this week is squarely on key consumer price index inflation data that is likely to factor into the outlook for interest rates.

U.S. stock index futures fell slightly in Asian trade, suggesting that a Monday rebound may now be stalling.

Chinese stocks sink on more potential US headwinds

China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indexes fell 0.3% each to a seven-month low, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.3% to a three-week low.

WuXi AppTec Co Ltd H (HK:2359) slid 9%, while Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group Co Ltd (HK:3692) fell 6% after the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill aimed at restricting business, especially government contracts, with Chinese biotech firms.

The bill still needs to clear the Senate, and is part of the Biosecure Act- which is aimed at limiting access to Americans’ medical and genetic data, which could potentially present a national security threat.

But the bill presents a major headwind for Chinese biotech firms, several of which have heavy exposure to the U.S. WuXi AppTec is also building a facility in Massachusetts.

Losses in biotech spilled over into broader Chinese stocks, given that the bill also heralds a worsening in Sino-U.S. relations.

Chinese markets- especially those in the Mainland- were also battered by a string of middling economic readings for August over the past week. Focus on Tuesday is on trade data for August.

Asian stocks rise with CPI, rate cuts in focus

Broader Asian markets advanced tracking their Wall Street peers, with focus squarely on CPI inflation data due on Wednesday. The reading comes just a week before a Federal Reserve meeting where the central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 and TOPIXindexes rose 0.2% and 0.8%, respectively, after sinking to a near one-month low last week.

Australia’s ASX 200 added 0.6%, even as data showed consumer sentiment worsened in early-September.

South Korea’s KOSPI was flat, while futures for India’s Nifty 50 index pointed to a mildly weaker open.

Regional markets clocked steep losses last week as renewed concerns over a global economic slowdown battered risk-driven markets. Japanese stocks were among the worst-hit by this trend, while Indian and Australian markets were mostly resilient.

This article first appeared in Investing.com