Asian stocks subdued ahead of Doha meet, ignore China data

The Asian stocks rally took a pause on the final trading day of this week, as a cautious tone prevailed in the markets ahead of the OPEC producers in Doha, while the regions’ indices failed to benefit from upbeat Chinese economic news.

China's Q1 GDP y/y met expectations at 6.7% vs 6.8% last. March Industrial Production y/y stood at 6.8% vs 5.9% expected and 5.4% last, while March Fixed Assets (excluding rural) YTD y/ came at 10.7% vs 10.4% expected and 10.2% last. As per March Retail Sales y/y, it came at 10.5% vs 10.4% last.

Nikkei ends a 3-day rally, despite weaker yen

The Japanese stocks traded on the back foot, tracking a subdued close on the Wall Street overnight The Japanese benchmark index, the Nikkei 225 dips -0.34% to 16,854 points, unable to benefit from renewed yen weakness, as poor CPI figures from the US and increasing nervousness ahead of the weekend’s oil producers’ meeting in Doha keeps the sentiment fragile. Meanwhile, USD/JPY is seen extending higher around 109.66, recording a 0.20% gain on the day.

The Australian markets found support from better Chinese data and upbeat assessment of the financial system, as reflected by the RBA’s Financial Stability Report (FSR). The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index gains +0.40% to trade at 5,138 points.

On the flip side, the Chinese equities trade largely subdued as traders digest the latest Chinese growth numbers along with other key economic indicators. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index trades -0.26% lower. The CSI300 index drops -0.20%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng trades muted around 21,340 levels.