Nikkei rallies +1% as Yen slips, China stocks drop

Mixed sentiment prevailed in the Asian stock markets this Tuesday, with the Australian and Japanese stocks extending in the positive territory, while the Chinese equities buck the trend and trade in the red zone.

A weaker yen this morning combined with upbeat Australian business confidence data fuelled renewed optimism in the markets and underpinned overall sentiment. While increasing nervousness ahead of key China’s macro releases kept the Chinese indices under pressure.

A host of Chinese data eyed

The Japanese benchmark index, the Nikkei 225 rallied +1.04% to 15,914 points, moving-off highs reached at 15,693. Higher exports’ stocks as well as auto sector stocks led the index higher amid yen’s relative weakness. Meanwhile, USD/JPY takes on the recovery above 108, up 0.20% on the day.

The Australian markets cheered auspicious Aus data, while higher gold prices also boosted the gold mining stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index advances 0.57% to trade at 4,960. National Australia Bank (NAB) Business Confidence jumped to 6 versus 3 previous, while the business conditions numbers for March hit fresh 8-year high, coming in at 12 versus 8 previously in February.

The Chinese equities ditched its Asian counterparts and extended to the downside, despite a slightly weaker Chinese yuan, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite index trading down -0.36%. The CSI300 index drops -0.50%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng attempts gains to trade 0.25% higher around 20,500 levels.