Asia report: Markets mixed amid China inflation data, Saudi Arabia concerns

Markets in Asia ended their sessions in a mixed state on Tuesday, as geopolitical tensions around Saudi Arabia continued to tighten, and following a weak close on Wall Street overnight.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 finished ahead 1.25% at 22,549.24, as the yen weakened 0.23% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 112.03.

SoftBank was ahead 3.62%, recovering somewhat from what were decent declines on Monday.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.85% at 2,546.33, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite slid 1.93% to 1,256.37.

The movements in China came after fresh official data showed consumer inflation rose 2.5% year-on-year in September, and 0.7% month-on-month.

Producer inflation was softer, however, which many market watchers saw as a sign that economic progress was slowing as trade tensions with the United States continued.

South Korea’s Kospi was flat at 2,145.12, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong managed gains of 0.07% to 25,462.26.

Investor attention was largely focussed on geopolitical developments during the session, as traders angsted over the possible effect the ongoing controversy around missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi could have on oil prices.

Khashoggi - an outspoken critic of the kingdom’s leadership - was last spotted entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, with King Salman ordering an internal investigation in cooperation with Turkey.

Oil prices were lower, with Brent crude last down 0.74% at $80.19 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate falling 0.84% to $71.18.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.56% firmer at 5,869.90, with the henfty financials subindex adding 0.55%.

Of the major banks, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group rose 0.47%, Commonwealth Bank of Australia added 0.21%, and National Australia Bank was ahead 0.55%.

National Australia Bank announced extra costs of AUD 314m during the day, to be put towards reimbursing customers who were found to have been overcharged in an ongoing federal inquiry into the Australian banking sector.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 was 0.4% lower at 8,803.45, led down by energy generator and retailer Meridian, which lost 1.7%.

The company’s monthly operating update showed its hydro storage in the South Island was 25% below average for this time of year, while storage was at 90% in the North Island.

Hydro storage was below historical norms across the country, which was causing some consternation in the industry when combined with an outage at the Pohokura gas field, pushing wholesale energy prices higher.

The down under dollars were a mixed affair, with the Aussie last 0.01% weaker on the greenback at AUD 1.4026, and the Kiwi 0.43% stronger at NZD 1.5197.