China reported that its exports increased 1.5% in April from a year earlier, while imports climbed 8.4%
Asian shares were mixed on Thursday after Wall Street’s lull extended into a second day, with Chinese benchmarks gaining after China reported better than expected trade figures for April.
U.S. futures were slightly lower and oil prices gained.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index was 0.5% higher at 38,392.10.
Automaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp.’s shares declined 4.7% in early trading after the firm forecasted a 7% lower net profit in the fiscal year that will end in March 2025.
Toyota Motor rose 0.1% after it reported Wednesday that it doubled its net profit in the fiscal year that ended in March.
The U.S. dollar advanced to 155.59 Japanese yen from 155.52 yen, as reports in Tokyo speculated on the possibility of further intervention by the Finance Ministry to curb the yen’s decline.
We are always prepared to do so if necessary. We might do it today. We might do it tomorrow, said Masato Kanda, the Finance vice minister for international affairs.
The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.2% to 18,538.57 and the Shanghai Composite index added 0.9% to 3,156.96.
China reported that its exports increased 1.5% in April from a year earlier, while imports climbed 8.4%. The renewed growth indicates a stronger recovery in demand than earlier data had suggested.
In South Korea, the Kospi shed 0.6%, to 2,729.64. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.9% to 7,735.20.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 closed virtually unchanged after flipping between modest gains and losses through the day. It dropped by 0.03 to 5,187.67, coming off a very slight gain from Tuesday, which followed a big three-day winning streak.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.4% to 39,056.39, and the Nasdaq composite shed 0.2% to 16,302.76.
