Asian markets experienced mixed results on Tuesday as a rally in US tech stocks lifted sentiment, while disappointing data from China raised concerns about the country’s economy. The Nasdaq closed more than one percent higher on Monday, thanks to gains by major tech companies such as Amazon, Google parent Alphabet, and Meta Platforms.
Tokyo’s market climbed 0.6 percent, fueled by a surge in tech firms and data showing a 1.5 percent growth in the Japanese economy in the second quarter. However, markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai closed down as weak figures from Beijing failed to alleviate worries about China’s slowing growth. European markets also fell, with London down 1.1 percent, Frankfurt off 0.7 percent, and Paris 0.8 percent lower.
Concerns were heightened by Chinese data showing slowing growth in retail sales in July, while industrial production fell short of analyst expectations. Additional pressure on Beijing to support the economy came from the decision to stop reporting the youth unemployment rate, which reached a record 21.3 percent in June.
The Russian ruble was trading around 97 to the dollar after Russia raised its key interest rate to 12 percent amid concerns over the heavily indebted property sector and the losses of massive developer Country Garden. The dollar held steady against the Japanese yen, reaching its highest level since November.
