Asian shares edge higher, but worry about China persists
Equities rise slightly after subdued session, while the Brexit-battered pound gets some rest
Sydney — Asian stocks nudged higher on Thursday after see-sawing through a subdued session on concern over China’s economic outlook, while an anti-climactic end to the latest chapter in the Brexit saga offered the pound a moment’s peace. Fresh news was thin on the ground leaving MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up a slight 0.2%. Japan’s Nikkei was almost flat after dithering in both directions. Spread-betters pointed to a softer start for the major European bourses, while e-mini futures for the S&P 500 drifted down 0.26%. China’s blue-chip index recouped early losses to gain 0.4%. It had been weighed by a fall in the country’s second largest home appliances maker, Gree Electric, after it warned of slower profit growth as the economy loses steam. China’s Premier Li Keqiang took to the radio to promise increased government investment this year. The country’s central bank did its part by injecting more cash into the financial system, bringing the amount for th...
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