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Asia-Pacific markets trade mixed after U.S. stocks hit new highs overnight

Lee Ying Shan

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

Singapore's central business district skyline at Marina Bay waterfront in May 2023.
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Tuesday, in contrast to Wall Street, which saw U.S. benchmarks notching record highs following President-elect Donald Trump's choice for Treasury secretary.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.69% to close at 8,359.4 after hitting a new all-time closing high on Monday.

Japan's Nikkei 225 shed 0.87% to close at 38,442, while the Topix lost 0.96% to close at 2,689.55. Japan's service PPI rose 2.9% year on year, compared to a 2.8% rise the previous month.

The Kospi slid 0.55% to end at 2,520 and the Kosdaq lost 0.53% to close at 693.15.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index traded 0.05% higher in its last hour of trade, while mainland China's CSI 300 added 0.21% to close at 3,840.18.


Singapore's manufacturing output rose 1.2% year on year, missing Reuters' expectations of a 2.2% rise, according to LSEG data. The figure compares to a 9.8% increase in September.

In the U.S., a rally in stocks propelled the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and the Russell 2000 index to reach new highs on Monday as investors cheered Trump's decision to nominate Scott Bessent, the founder of Key Square Group.

The blue-chip Dow rose 440.06 points, or 0.99%, to 44,736.57. The broad S&P 500 gained 0.3% to end at 5,987.37. Both hit new all-time highs in the session, while the Dow also notched a fresh record close. The Nasdaq Composite ticked up 0.27%, finishing the day at 19,054.84.

—CNBC's Alex Harring and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.

Singapore's October manufacturing output misses expectations

Singapore's manufacturing output rose 1.2% year on year, missing Reuters' estimates of a 2.2% growth, according to LSEG data. The figure compares to a 9.8% increase in September.

On a monthly basis, manufacturing output rose 0.1% in October compared to the previous month, also missing analysts' estimate of a 1.3% increase.

—Lee Ying Shan

Gold plunges 3% as Trump Treasury pick and potential Israel-Hezbollah truce fuel risk-on mood

Gold Bullion from the American Precious Metals Exchange in New York on Sept. 15, 2011.
Mike Segar | Reuters

Gold prices lost about 3% after President-elect Trump picked Scott Bessent as his Treasury secretary, with reports of Israel and Hezbollah nearing a ceasefire deal also eroding the safe-haven metal's appeal.

Spot prices of the yellow metal dropped 3.44% to $2,616.80 per ounce, according to data from FactSet. Gold futures on the New York Mercantile exchange were trading at $2,628.5.

"The ~$100 wipeout in Gold today is as severe in size & pace as the post U.S. election selloff on Nov 6th," MKS Pamp's head of metals strategy, Nicky Shiels, said.

Read the full story here.

— Lee Ying Shan

Trump vows an additional 10% tariff on China, 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico

President-elect Trump plans to raise tariffs an additional 10% on all Chinese goods coming into the U.S., according to a post Monday on his social media platform Truth Social.

The post immediately followed one in which Trump said his first of "many" executive orders on Jan. 20 would impose tariffs of 25% on all products from Mexico and Canada.

Trump is set to be inaugurated as the next U.S. president on Jan. 20.

Read the full story here.

— Evelyn Cheng

Japan business service prices jump in October

Japan's service producer price index for October came in at 2.9%, higher than September's 2.8%.

The index, an indicator of the cost of various goods and services offered by businesses to other companies and government organizations, showed that postal services and hotel services are amongst the largest contributor to the monthly differences of yearly changes in October, the Bank of Japan reported.

—Lee Ying Shan

Russell 2000 outperforms, hits new all-time high

Small-cap stocks saw outsized gains on Monday, continuing the recent trend and notching a new record.

The Russell 2000 climbed 2% in the session and notched a fresh all-time high, surpassing a prior record set in 2021. With that, the index is up about 6.5% compared to one week ago.

By comparison, the S&P 500 ticked up just about 0.3% in the session. Its one-week gain sits at just around 1.5%.

This outperformance can be attributed to expectations for the group to benefit under President-elect Trump. That is because of the Republican's preference for less regulation, which is a stance typically considered good for smaller firms.

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Russell 2000 vs. S&P 500, 5-day

— Alex Harring

CNBC Pro: Barclays says these global stocks are ripe for share buybacks — and analysts give one 45% upside

European equity markets might look "gloomy" right now, but Barclays noted that one investment strategy has delivered "solid outperformance" over recent months.

"Buyback strategies remain a bright spot for Europe, with strong volumes and returns. Amid a gloomy equity market, our buyback announcement basket (BCEUBUYB) has outperformed by 4.6% since Oct," the investment bank's strategists wrote in a Nov. 21 research note.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Amala Balakrishner

CNBC Pro: Hedge fund bets on a key oil and gas supply chain stock, expecting 300% upside

Shares of a critical player in the shallow water oil and gas drilling industry, have received renewed backing from a hedge fund, with potential projected returns of 300% to 400%.

The investment case is strengthened by several fundamental market dynamics, including a lack of supply with future demand expected to rise, according to the hedge fund manager.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao