China’s Decision Had a Serious Impact on Stocks

Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Wednesday as China made the decision not to change its benchmark lending rate.

Mainland Chinese stocks suffered serious losses on Wednesday. The Shanghai composite declined 1.35% to finish its trading day at 3,151.05. The Shenzhen component dropped 2.072% to close at 11,392.23.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index shed earlier gains and was down 0.4% as of its final hour of trading. One day earlier, the index declined 2.28% to close at 21,027.76.

On Wednesday, China made an important decision. It decided to keep its one-year loan prime rate unchanged at 3.7%, while also holding steady on the five-year LPR at 4.6%. Many traders and analysts expected a cut in the loan prime rate this month.

Furthermore, investors have been watching for policy support from authorities. Mainland China is trying to cope with its worst Covid-19 outbreak since the initial shock of the pandemic in 2020. Authorities in Shanghai and other places are struggling to stabilize the situation.

The country’s second-quarter growth rate is set to be weak, however, authorities are likely to make moves toward ensuring sufficient liquidity in the system rather than flooding it.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.86% to finish its trading day at 27,217.85. The Topix added 1.03% to close at 1,915.15.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw fractional gains on the day to 7,569.20. 

U.S. stocks on Tuesday

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as traders navigated one of the busiest weeks of corporate earnings season. They also watched the latest moves in interest rates.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 499.51 points or 1.45% to 34,911.20. The S&P 500 gained 1.61% to close at 4,462.21. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.15% to 13,619.66. 

On Tuesday, the small and mid-cap heavy Russell 2000 gained 2.1%.