Asian shares mixed after Wall St barely misses bear market

Asian shares mixed after Wall St barely misses bear market

SeattlePI.com

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Shares are mixed in Asia in cautious trading after Wall Street rumbled to the edge of a bear market on Friday.

Tokyo and Sydney were higher Monday while Hong Kong and Shanghai declined.

Investors were awaiting minutes from the latest policy setting meeting of the Federal Reserve and updates on consumer prices, due later this week.

On Friday the S&P 500 dipped more than 20% below its peak set early this year before buying late in the day gave it a tiny gain. It finished 18.7% below its record. That capped a seventh straight losing week, the longest since 2001, when the dot-com bubble was deflating.

Inflation and rising interest rates, the war in Ukraine, and China’s slowing economy are all punishing stocks and raising fears about a possible U.S. recession.

The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained 0.5% to 26,868.02. President Joe Biden's visit to Japan and South Korea was due to result in the launching of a U.S. initiative on economic cooperation and security.

Called the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, the White House said it will help the United States and Asian economies work more closely on issues including supply chains, digital trade, clean energy, worker protections and anticorruption efforts.

However, the details still need to be negotiated among member countries, making it unclear how the framework might help U.S. workers and businesses while also serving the interests of partner countries.

South Korea's Kospi was unchanged, at 2,639.58.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% higher to 7,154.70. Australia’s center-left opposition party on Saturday toppled the conservative government after almost a decade in power.

Anthony Albanese was sworn in as prime minister after his Labor party clinched its first electoral win since 2007. Labor has promised more financial...

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