Asian markets fluctuate on Monday, as investors looked past a weekend dominated with news of Donald Trump’s inauguration and await details on policies including plans to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement and abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal.
The new administration said on Friday that its trade strategy to protect American jobs would start with the withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and “crack down on those nations that violate trade agreements and harm American workers in the process.”
The ASX 200 index of Australia went down 0.84 percent after trading higher at the start as its industrials sub-index fell 4.34 percent.
Brambles, the logistics company sharply went down 16.7 percent, after the company downgraded its earnings guidance for the six months ended in December 31 of last year, due to concerns for its North American Operations.
Compared to its last guidance of 7 to 9 percent, the company expects its sales revenue growth at 5 percent. Its underlying profit growth is expected to be around 3 percent compared to the prior forecast of 9 to 11 percent.
The Nikkei 225 index of Japan went down 1.12 percent possibly due to the advancing yen as the dollar fell below the 114 level.
Shares for Toshiba spiked 8.11 percent, after reports that it’s in the middle of preparing for the sale of its semiconductor business.
Other major exporters in Japan were hit by the stronger currency. Toyota Motor fell 1.34 percent, Honda Motor shed 1.86 percent, while Sony was off 1.07 percent and Panasonic was down 1.04 percent.
South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.31 percent as the political saga continues with President Park Geun-hye's culture minister and her former presidential adviser arrested on Saturday over allegations that they blacklisted artists critical of the government according to a report from Reuters.
Samsung Electronics went up 0.7 percent.