BANGKOK (AP) — Shares were mixed in thin Asian trading on Monday after U.S. stocks edged back from their all-time high.
Oil prices fell and U.S. futures sank, while Chinese shares shed some of their early gains after a survey of manufacturers showed export orders dropping to a five-month low.
The official manufacturing purchasing managers index fell to 49.1 in January from 50.1 in December, slipping into contractionary territory on a scale where 50 and above indicates expansion. New orders and construction PMIs also fell.
Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said the slowdown might be temporary given increased government spending. Many factories close for a time during January, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays, which begin on Tuesday.
“But the disappointing PMI data underscores the difficulty policymakers face in achieving a sustained recovery in growth,” Huang wrote in a commentary.
The Hang Seng in Hong Kong was up 0.7% at 20,213.07, while the Shanghai Composite index fell less than 0.1% to 3,250.60.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gave up 0.9% to 39,565.80, extending losses after the Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to 0.25%, its highest level since 2008.
The U.S. dollar was steady against the Japanese yen, at 155.83 yen, up from 155.72. The euro slipped to $1.0462 from $1.0483.
In Bangkok, the SET fell 0.9%.
Trading was closed in many other Asian markets due to holidays.
On Friday, U.S. stocks pulled back from their all-time high to close out a second straight winning week.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% a day after setting a record, closing at 6,101.24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.3% to 44,424.25, and the Nasdaq composite sank 0.5% to 19,954.30.
Trading was quiet, aided by relative steadiness in the bond market, which has been driving much of the action on Wall Street lately. When worries about inflation and the U.S. government’s swelling debt have been on the rise, Treasury yields have climbed and helped knock down stock prices. When concerns ebb, such as after last week’s encouraging update on inflation, yields have eased and helped stocks rise.
A mostly encouraging start to the earnings reporting season for big U.S. companies has also helped prop up the stock market. Even if higher Treasury yields are pushing downward on their stock prices, companies can make up for it by delivering bigger profits.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.61% from 4.65% late Thursday. Other yields also pulled lower following a couple reports on the U.S. economy that came in worse than expected.
One said U.S. consumer sentiment is weaker than economists had forecast and fell in January for the first time in six months. A separate preliminary report suggested U.S. business activity is also weaker than expected. A third, potentially more encouraging report said sales of previously occupied homes were slightly stronger last month than expected, following the weakest year for such sales since 1995.
Traders don’t expect the weak data to push the Federal Reserve to cut its main interest rate at its meeting next week. They’re virtually certain the central bank will hold steady, according to data from CME Group.
In other dealings early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil shed 47 cents to $74.19 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 53 cents to $77.02.
