Investing.com - Asian stock markets outside Japan were lower on Thursday, as a partial U.S. government shutdown dragged on with few signs of progress towards a resolution ahead of an October 17 deadline to avoid a U.S. sovereign default.
Shares in Tokyo outperformed the region as the yen weakened against the U.S. dollar, boosting sentiment.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.7%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index ended 0.36% lower, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed up 1.12%.
Investors continued to monitor negotiations over a U.S. budget impasse that has kept the federal government shut down since October 1.
Markets were also mulling over how the political deadlock in Washington will impact on negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Lawmakers must raise the USD16.7 trillion debt limit or risk an unprecedented default.
Meanwhile, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September policy meeting published Wednesday showed that the central bank's decision not to taper its bond-buying program was a "relatively close call".
The Fed took markets by surprise last month with a decision to keep its stimulus program on track, saying it wanted to see more evidence of a sustained economic recovery before tapering.
The shutdown has halted the release of economic reports, including payrolls data for September, fuelling speculation the Fed will hold off on any move to scale back its stimulus program.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei rose to a one-week high after data showed that Japan’s core machinery orders increased 5.4% in September, easily surpassing expectations for a 2% gain.
In a separate report, the METI said its Japanese tertiary industry activity index rose by 0.7% last month after contracting 0.4% in August. Analysts expected the tertiary index to rise by 0.5% in September.
USD/JPY rose to hit a session high of 97.81, the highest level since October 3 and moving further off a two-month low of 96.65 hit earlier in the week.
A weaker yen increases the value of overseas income at Japanese companies when repatriated, boosting the outlook for export earnings.
Automakers Toyota and Honda saw shares rise 1.9% and 2.5% respectively, while Mazda climbed 2.4%.
Meanwhile, in Australia, the ASX/200 Index inched lower after official data showed that the economy added 9,100 jobs in September, missing expectations for an increase of 15,000.
The nation’s unemployment rate unexpectedly declined to 5.6% last month from 5.8% in August.
Raw material producers were lower after commodity prices declined in New York. BHP Billiton saw shares slump 0.6%, Newcrest Mining dropped 2.65%, while Woodside Petroleum retreated 0.8%.
Elsewhere, Hong Kong, the Hang Seng fell to a four-week low amid ongoing uncertainty over the U.S. government shutdown and the upcoming debt ceiling debate.
Investors were also cautious ahead of the release of key Chinese economic data, with the Asian nation scheduled to publish trade and inflation numbers over the weekend and early next week.
The China banking sector were among the biggest drags on the index, with China Construction Bank shares dropping 1.4%, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China falling 1.3% and Bank of China declining 1.1%.
Looking ahead, European stock market futures pointed to a higher open.
The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.65% at the open, France’s CAC 40 futures added 0.6%, London’s FTSE 100 futures indicated a rise of 0.4%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to an increase of 0.5% at the open.
The European Central Bank was to publish its monthly bulletin later Thursday, while the Bank of England was to announce its benchmark interest rate.
Shares in Tokyo outperformed the region as the yen weakened against the U.S. dollar, boosting sentiment.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.7%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index ended 0.36% lower, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed up 1.12%.
Investors continued to monitor negotiations over a U.S. budget impasse that has kept the federal government shut down since October 1.
Markets were also mulling over how the political deadlock in Washington will impact on negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Lawmakers must raise the USD16.7 trillion debt limit or risk an unprecedented default.
Meanwhile, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September policy meeting published Wednesday showed that the central bank's decision not to taper its bond-buying program was a "relatively close call".
The Fed took markets by surprise last month with a decision to keep its stimulus program on track, saying it wanted to see more evidence of a sustained economic recovery before tapering.
The shutdown has halted the release of economic reports, including payrolls data for September, fuelling speculation the Fed will hold off on any move to scale back its stimulus program.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei rose to a one-week high after data showed that Japan’s core machinery orders increased 5.4% in September, easily surpassing expectations for a 2% gain.
In a separate report, the METI said its Japanese tertiary industry activity index rose by 0.7% last month after contracting 0.4% in August. Analysts expected the tertiary index to rise by 0.5% in September.
USD/JPY rose to hit a session high of 97.81, the highest level since October 3 and moving further off a two-month low of 96.65 hit earlier in the week.
A weaker yen increases the value of overseas income at Japanese companies when repatriated, boosting the outlook for export earnings.
Automakers Toyota and Honda saw shares rise 1.9% and 2.5% respectively, while Mazda climbed 2.4%.
Meanwhile, in Australia, the ASX/200 Index inched lower after official data showed that the economy added 9,100 jobs in September, missing expectations for an increase of 15,000.
The nation’s unemployment rate unexpectedly declined to 5.6% last month from 5.8% in August.
Raw material producers were lower after commodity prices declined in New York. BHP Billiton saw shares slump 0.6%, Newcrest Mining dropped 2.65%, while Woodside Petroleum retreated 0.8%.
Elsewhere, Hong Kong, the Hang Seng fell to a four-week low amid ongoing uncertainty over the U.S. government shutdown and the upcoming debt ceiling debate.
Investors were also cautious ahead of the release of key Chinese economic data, with the Asian nation scheduled to publish trade and inflation numbers over the weekend and early next week.
The China banking sector were among the biggest drags on the index, with China Construction Bank shares dropping 1.4%, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China falling 1.3% and Bank of China declining 1.1%.
Looking ahead, European stock market futures pointed to a higher open.
The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.65% at the open, France’s CAC 40 futures added 0.6%, London’s FTSE 100 futures indicated a rise of 0.4%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to an increase of 0.5% at the open.
The European Central Bank was to publish its monthly bulletin later Thursday, while the Bank of England was to announce its benchmark interest rate.