Stocks in Asia were mostly higher overight with the Hang Seng (^HSI) rising 0.5% in Hong Kong, and the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) 0.2% up by the end of the session.
However, the Nikkei (^N225) fell 0.6% on the day in Tokyo , as export growth in Japan continued to decelerate for the second consecutive month in April.
It came as th country grappled with the fallout from tariffs imposed by the US. Imports shrank 2.2% from a year ago, less than the Bloomberg estimates of a 4.2% decline and compared to a downwardly revised increase of 1.8% the previous month.
As a result, Japan’s trade balance unexpectedly swung into a deficit of 115.8 billion yen compared to the 215.3 billion yen expected after two months in the black.
Across the pond, major stock indexes eased while longer-dated US Treasury yields inched higher on Tuesday, with investors focused on fiscal concerns as congress debated a bill for sweeping tax cuts.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) fell 0.39% last night, in what marked the end of a six day winning streak. The Dow Jones (^DJI) finished 0.27% lower, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) index fell 0.37%.
“The main driver is a consolidation day,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare. “The market has just been so red hot.”
Investors have also been fixated on higher yields in the Treasury market. Moody’s highlighted the deficit last week in a downgrade of the US credit rating.
