FX.co ★ Asian Shares Gain Led By Japan; China Stocks Slip

Asian stock markets saw widespread gains on Tuesday, though Chinese markets underperformed due to conflicting PMI data releases. The US dollar increased in value against other major currencies in anticipation of Wednesday's announcement from the Federal Reserve.

Gold prices experienced a decrease in Asian markets while oil prices showed little change, following a sharp drop on Monday brought on by discussions of a potential ceasefire in Gaza.

Chinese stocks performed poorly after varying business activity readings were released. Despite a private survey suggesting a more positive view of the manufacturing sector, official surveys indicated slower growth in manufacturing and services over April. As a result, the Shanghai Composite index fell by 0.26 percent to settle at 3,104.82.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index saw a slight increase, reaching 17,763.03. This came amidst rumors of a planned depreciation of the yuan to enhance the competitive nature of the Chinese economy.

Japanese markets also possessed regional gains following a long holiday weekend. The Nikkei average saw a rise of 1.24 percent to reach 38,405.66 as the US dollar climbed to the upper 156-yen range. This was reported to be due to significant gains experienced the previous day, allegedly a result of intervention in the currency markets by authorities. The Topix index also saw a rise, of 2.11 percent to 2,743.17, following data indicating Japan's factory output had exceeded expectations in March.

However, in contrast, Japan's retail sales growth in March fell short of expectations and the unemployment rate remained static at 2.6 percent.

Seoul stocks also saw a slight increase despite monthly activity data revealing an uneven economic recovery. The Kospi average increased by 0.17 percent to 2,692.06.

Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest memory chip maker, reported a staggering 932.8 percent jump in operating profit for the first quarter ending in March, in part due to the global surge in AI development. In response, its stock rose by over 1 percent.

Australian markets experienced small gains as weaker-than-expected retail sales data tempered fears of imminent interest rate hikes. The benchmark S&P ASX 200 increased by 0.35 percent to reach 7,664.10, while the All Ordinaries index saw a

slight increase, of 0.32 percent, to end at 7,932.

Mostly, banks ended on a positive note ahead of early May’s trading updates.

Azure Minerals saw a 8.2 percent surge following important approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board, which allows progress in a takeover offer for the company by SH Mining.

Similarly, across the Tasman sea, New Zealand's benchmark S&P NZX-50 index inched up 0.35 percent to 11,957.50.

On Monday, US stocks experienced minor gains as last week’s increases continued in the lead up to the Federal Reserve meeting, and the announcement that Tesla had paved the way for the introduction of self-driving software in China.

The Dow and Nasdaq Composite both saw an approximate increase of 0.4 percent, while the S&P 500 rose by 0.3 percent.