Asian shares mixed, H.K. skids after Moody’s downgrade
18 September, 2019
Shares were mixed in Asia on Tuesday, led by declines in Chinese benchmarks after the credit ratings agency Moody’s downgraded Hong Kong, citing the city’s recent political turmoil.
The U.S. and international benchmarks for crude fell back slightly after vaulting more than 14 percent overnight after an attack on Saudi Arabia’s largest oil processing plant.
The Nikkei 225 index recovered from early losses to edge 0.1 percent higher at 22,001.32 and South Korea’s Kospi was flat at 2,062.33. The S&P ASX/200 in Sydney added 0.3 percent to 6,695.30.
But the Shanghai Composite index skidded 1.7 percent to 2,978.71 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 1.0 percent after Moody’s shifted its outlook to “negative.” Fitch Rating did so earlier.
Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, said the downgrade was “disappointing.”
Moody’s said in a statement that the protests and their handling showed weaknesses in Hong Kong’s institutions. The turmoil was “damaging its attractiveness as a trade and financial hub,” it said.
Elsewhere in Asia, India’s Sensex fell 0.8 percent. Shares also lost ground in Taiwan and Singapore but rose in Indonesia and Thailand.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5 percent to 27,076.82, breaking a streak of eight consecutive gains. The S&P 500 lost 0.3 percent, to 2,997.96, its biggest decline in two weeks. American Airlines was the biggest decliner in the index.
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