Wednesday was a gloomy day for Southeast Asian stocks as they fell one after the another. Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines posted declining stocks, but it was Vietnam who took the biggest hit of the countries. Fears of a growing China-US trade dispute and its effects on the Chinese economy weighed heavily on the economies of the said countries, according to Yahoo! PH.
Investors from Southeast Asia and beyond reacted badly to the "dwindling hopes" for a positive resolution of the trade talks. Investors in Asia were wary about the slowing growth of China's economy, and expectations of an expected meeting between US president Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping did not do any good.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside of Japan had slipped down 0.6^ after showing gains for two days. China's economy was still good, however, manufacturing showed signs of faltering, with many taking it as a sign that China's economy is entering a period of cooling down. Vietnam, meanwhile, shed 0.8% in the regional stocks with financial and real estate shares dragging the index down.
However gloomy the forecast was due to the other factors, Reuters reported that the effects of the trade war with Mexico weren't accounted for just yet. The perception is that if it was taken into account, the global growth factors will be adjusted to reflect the trend. US president Trump's administration's posturing didn't help matters to improve as well.
Singapore stocks, meanwhile, reflected a decline as index month displayed a much lower index rating. Usual heavyweights DBS Group Holdings Ltd and Jardine Strategic Holdings Ltd didn't make things look any better. Their ratings were reflected at 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively, even as the Philippine stocks were halted due to a holiday.
Thai shares, meanwhile, posted a recovery rate from early falls while losses in energy stocks offset any gains made, especially in real estate. Oil and gas firm PTT PCL posted losses as well, with 0.5% while Land and Houses PCL added fuel to the fire, posting a loss of 6.4%. Losses in the region were expected after US officials joined the picture of "impatience" displayed by the US president.
The penultimate reason behind this slip remained the upcoming meeting between the US president and Chinese president Xi Jinping. It's one of the many such meetings between the two dignitaries. The problem might be that, should situations do not improve, the prevailing trend in the region may continue.
