· Fed’s inflation pivot could be catastrophic for stocks, fund manager says
· Asia-Pacific stocks mixed; Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong drop after Didi delisting plans
Asia-Pacific stocks were mixed in Friday trade, following days of turbulent trading this week as investors continue to monitor the situation surrounding the omicron Covid variant.
Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong plunged after ride-hailing giant Didi announced Friday that it will begin taking steps to delist from the New York Stock Exchange — less than six months after it made its debut stateside. The company also said in the statement that it will pursue a listing in Hong Kong.
Shares of Tencent in Hong Kong fell 2.58% while Alibaba dropped 3.43% and Meituan slipped 2.91%. The Hang Seng Tech index declined 1.52%.
Hong Kong’s broader Hang Seng index fell 0.48% as of its final hour of trading.
Mainland Chinese stocks closed higher, with the Shanghai composite rising 0.94% to 3,607.43 while the Shenzhen component climbed 0.857% to 14,892.05.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 closed 1% higher at 28,029.57 while the Topix index gained 1.63% to finish the trading day at 1,957.86. Shares of conglomerate SoftBank Group, which holds a sizable stake in Didi, shed 0.71%.
South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.78% to close at 2,968.33.
Shares in Australia also rose as the S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.22% on the day to 7,241.20.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.42%.
· European stocks climb, looking for a positive end to a tumultuous week
European markets moved higher on Friday, looking for a positive end to a tumultuous week following the discovery of the new omicron Covid-19 variant.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 added 0.5% in early trade, with travel and leisure stocks bouncing 2% on easing omicron fears as almost all sectors and major bourses entered positive territory.
Reference: CNBC,Reuters
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