Asia trades lower on inflation, pandemic worries

Major stock market indexes in Asia traded lower on Friday with investors concerned about the impact of soaring oil prices putting upward pressure on prices and indicating businesses would continue grappling with shortages of goods, as some of the world’s largest economies continue to battle surging COVID-19 cases.

On the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.84% at 4:30 am CET, with the Shenzhen Composite down by 1.13% at 5:26 am CET. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng went down by 0.75% at 5:05 am CET.

At 5:33 am CET, South Korea’s Kospi Composite declined by 1.31%, while the dollar traded 0.38% lower against the yen, going for 113.7625. The Australian S&P/ASX 200 lost 2.27% at 5:34 am CET, as Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by 1.46%.

Baha Breaking the News (BBN) / NL