Today is the last of 2020, and let’s have a look at the stocks in Asia-Pacific on the last day of the year. Interestingly, stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed as multiple markets in the region early for New Year’s Eve.
Let’s start with mainland Chinese stocks. The Shanghai Composite added 1.72% to 3,473.07. At the same time, the Shenzhen Component gained 1.895% to end its trading day at 14,470.68.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.31% to 27,231.13.
It is worth noting that, factory activity expanded in December. According to China’s National Bureau of Statistics, the country’s official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) in December came in at 51.9. However, this result failed to meet expectations.
Importantly, in November the result was 52.1. As a reminder, the result above 50 indicates expansion while below 50 indicates contraction.
People should take into account that, China and the European Union agreed on Wednesday to an investment deal that will give firms in Europe greater access to Chinese markets.
Importantly, markets in Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong closed earlier than usual on Thursday due to New Year’s Eve. As a reminder, markets in Japan and South Korea were closed on Thursday for a holiday.
Stocks and coronavirus vaccine
The coronavirus pandemic dominated the headlines for more the 9 months. Moreover, the pandemic is not over yet, and this topic will continue to dominate affect investor sentiment for a certain period of time.
This week, the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca received authorization for emergency use in the U.K. Hopefully, the company plans to produce its vaccine in huge quantities. Moreover, the price of this vaccine is more democratic.
Nonetheless, the U.K. government outline plans on Wednesday to impose stricter coronavirus restrictions on people across England. The government wants to cope with the rising number of cases and people should follow the regulations.
The companies, as well as individuals, are struggling to cope with financial problems. Moreover, it won’t be easy to overcome all challenges in a short period of time. Nevertheless, governments should join forces with companies to help people to deal with all problems. Moreover, governments should continue to allocate billions of dollars for various projects. This way it will be easier to support a large number of companies, that provide jobs to thousands of people.
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