Asian equities fall to 14-month lows as trade war drags on
Stocks slips as investor confidence is chilled by the latest round of verbal threats in an intensifying US-China trade conflict
Tokyo — Asian stocks slipped to 14-month lows on Wednesday, as investor confidence was chilled by the latest round of verbal threats in an intensifying US-China trade conflict. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.3%, plumbing its lowest levels since July 2017. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.5% and the Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.3%. Tokyo’s Nikkei declined 0.4% and Australian stocks gave up 0.1%, while South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.2%. The mood was dimmed by the verbal sparring between Washington and Beijing as the months-long escalation in trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies took their toll on riskier assets. China told the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on Tuesday that it wanted to impose $7bn a year in sanctions on the US in retaliation for Washington’s non-compliance with a ruling in a dispute over US dumping duties. Separately, US President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the US was taking a tough stance with Chin...
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