Asian markets closed lower on Friday, May 30, the closing session for the week and for May. Japan’s Nikkei index fell more than 450 points as Japanese government bond yields declined, but it maintained its weekly gains. Declining auto prices weighed on Chinese indices.
Regarding economic data released this morning, figures released from Tokyo showed that core inflation, which excludes fresh food, accelerated to 3.6% in May, its highest level since January 2023, compared to 3.4% in April, exceeding market expectations. This acceleration marked the fourth consecutive month, up from 2.2% in February. Headline inflation came in at 3.4%, unchanged from April’s reading, in line with market expectations. The Nikkei index closed at 37,965, down 1.22%, or 467 points, while the Topix index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell by approximately 0.37%, closing at 2,801. Both indices recorded weekly gains of 2.15% and 2.45%, respectively. Lasertec and Tokyo Electron led the Nikkei’s losses, falling more than 4.5%.
Chinese indices recorded declines in today’s closing session. The broader Chinese CSI300 index fell by approximately 0.48%, closing at 3,840 points, while the Shanghai Composite index of the Shanghai Stock Exchange closed down by 0.47%, closing at 3,347 points.
The Hang Seng Index, the main index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, fell by approximately 1.20%, closing at 23,289 points. Baidu and Lenovo led the declines, with declines of more than 3.5%. The automotive sector led the decline in Hong Kong-listed indices amid rising price war concerns. Shares in XPeng fell 5%, BYD fell 3.25%, and NEO fell 4.4%.
Conversely, South Korea’s Kospi index fell 0.84% ​​in today’s session, closing at 2,697 points.
India’s Sensex index fell 0.16% before closing at 81,516 points, while the Nifty 50 index fell 0.27% to trade at 24,765 points.
New Zealand stock markets closed with gains today, with the NZX 50 index rising 1.12% to close at 12,418 points, while Australia’s ASX 200 index rose 0.30% to close at 8,434 points. Singapore’s main index declined 0.26% in pre-market trading.