Asian Stocks Rise, Chinese Shares Reverse Gains: Markets Wrap

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(Bloomberg) -- Equities in Asia rose after Wall Street closed higher, helped along by a rotation out of megacap tech to small-cap companies. Chinese stocks erased gains after a press briefing by finance and housing ministers.

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China’s CSI 300 index turned flat after rising as much as 1.3% earlier. A gauge of Chinese property stocks extended losses. China said that it will expand a program to support “white list” projects to 4 trillion yuan ($562 billion) from about 2.23 trillion yuan already deployed. Hong Kong stock benchmarks also trimmed gains.

Shares in Australia rose, while Japanese stocks fluctuated. US equity futures edged lower after the S&P 500 rose 0.5% on Wednesday. The Russell 2000 index of small-caps rose to the highest level in almost three years, while the Nasdaq 100 lagged, climbing just 0.1%.

The focus on China was set to continue, with data due Friday expected to show the economy expanded 4.5% in the third quarter from a year ago, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg. That would mark its weakest pace in six quarters.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on government officials to make every effort in the final quarter to help the country meet its annual growth target of around 5%. However, after a series of press conferences this month in which policymakers offered no details of fresh stimulus, fears are now mounting that efforts may not be enough to revive growth.

“The challenge right now is that we don’t have a big enough package to get people excited,” Jun Bei Liu, portfolio manager at Tribeca Investment Partners, said on Bloomberg Television. “Right now the Chinese economy is sitting at the bottom — but to reignite the growth, they really need to reignite confidence,” she said.

Elsewhere, Australian bond yields rose after the country’s unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in September; economists polled by Bloomberg anticipated it would hold steady. The 10-year Treasury yield inched higher 4%, and a dollar index remained near its highest levels since early August.

The yen strengthened after declining against the greenback in the prior session, as Japanese exports suffered a surprise decline in September.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s earnings will be closely watched on Thursday for any signs of slowing demand for chips, after ASML Holding NV offered surprisingly dour order numbers and cut its 2025 revenue forecast earlier in the week.

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