Eyes are now on Congress where Republican Senators have presented their revised healthcare bill, which traders hope will pass through Congress and pave the way for President Donald Trump to focus on his economic agenda
Crude enjoyed a rare positive day on Thursday after hefty selling that sent it to a 10-month low, but the gains were small change as concerns over a global supply glut and US production overshadow output cuts by OPEC and Russia.
The sharp losses — oil is down around 25 percent from its recent highs seen in January — has bloodied energy firms and, despite another pick-up in the commodity, they continue to struggle.
In Hong Kong CNOOC and PetroChina were in retreat, while Sydney-listed Woodside Petroleum and Inpex in Tokyo were also down.
“Falling oil prices continue to temper sentiment in global macro markets and while the Nervous Nellies take solace as oil prices base overnight, don’t get too comfortable as the oil patch narrative will likely be the primary catalyst in the coming months,” said Stephen Innes, senior trader at OANDA.
Tokyo’s Nikkei ended the morning marginally lower, while Shanghai and Sydney each lost 0.1 percent, Singapore fell 0.3 percent and Wellington was off 0.2 percent. Seoul was barely changed.
However, Hong Kong edged up 0.3 percent.
Traders are tracking events in Washington where Republican Senators unveiled a revised healthcare bill to unpick Obamacare, which market players hope will be able to pass through Congress.
If you have any sort of concerns pertaining to where and ways to utilize Best Jewel Quest US, you could call us at our web page. Markets went south earlier this year when an initial draft failed at the first hurdle as Trump was unable to win enough support even in his own party — fuelling concerns about his plans for other policies such as tax and infrastructure spending.
Republicans hold 52 out of 100 seats in the Senate and the latest, if still controversial, bill is designed to find an agreement between the conservative wing and more moderate Republicans.
“(The) Senates health care bill is ready for a vote,” said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at AxiTrader.
“That the GOP and president need this is no understatement politically. Because of the nuances of US budgetary policy and rules, the resolution to health care is a prerequisite to president Trumps tax plans.
“Or at least they become more problematic to structure if health care is not resolved.”
– Key figures around 0230 GMT –
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: FLAT at 20,107.76 (break)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng: UP 0.3 percent at 25,740.56
Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,143.29
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1149 from $1.1152 at 2100 GMT
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2682 from $1.2684
Dollar/yen: UP at 111.36 yen from 111.30 yen
Oil – West Texas Intermediate: UP 15 cents at $42.89 per barrel
Oil – Brent North Sea: UP 18 cents at $45.40 per barrel
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 21,397.29 (close)
London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 7,439.29 (close)