Asian shares mostly higher on strong manufacturing data

TOKYO – Shares were mostly higher in Asia on Wednesday, lifted by upbeat manufacturing data from China and Japan. The U.S. dollar was steady, regaining some lost ground after falling on comments by President Donald Trump accusing China and Japan of manipulating their currencies.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.6 per cent to 19,148.08 and the Kospi in South Korea jumped 0.6 per cent to 2,080.48. Australia’s S&P ASX 200 gained 0.6 per cent to 5,653.20. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.4 per cent to 23,277.72. The Sensex in India edged 0.1 per cent lower to 27,639.29. Shares in Southeast Asia were mostly higher. Markets in mainland China and Taiwan were closed for the lunar new year holiday.

FACTORY OUTLOOK: Chinese manufacturing expanded in January at close to its fastest pace in two years as heavy government spending and a bank lending boom helped to keep economic activity steady headed into 2017, a survey showed Wednesday. A similar survey in Japan showed manufacturing at its highest level in nearly three years, with strong new orders and confidence in the outlook for the coming year. “Reports of an increase in foreign demand was also backed by the survey data, with new export orders rising at the quickest rate in one year,” IHS Markit said in its Japan Nikkei Manufacturing PMI report.

CURRENCIES: Japanese officials President Donald Trump assertion that Tokyo is using its monetary policies to weaken the yen against the U.S. dollar to gain a trade advantage. Government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said Trump’s comments, made in a meeting with executives of pharmaceutical companies, “completely miss the mark.” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is due to meet with Trump in Washington on Feb. 10, and Suga told reporters Japan plans to explain its stance on the issue. After Trump’s comments, the dollar weakened sharply against the yen, but it rebounded later. By late afternoon it was trading at 113.30 yen, up from its previous close of 112.94 yen. The euro rose to $1.0803 from $1.0695.

WALL STREET: Investors have been bidding up assets that are traditionally seen as less risky, including gold, government bonds, and stocks that pay big dividends. The advent of President Donald Trump’s administration has led investors to seek out safer investments, said Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist for Wells Capital Management. “More than anything right now, it’s just the pace of news,” he said. “It is so dramatic.” On Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.5 per cent to 19,864.09 and the S&P 500 edged 0.1 per cent lower, to 2,278.87. The Nasdaq was nearly flat at 5,614.79.

APPLE: After the market closed, Apple reported a bigger profit and greater sales than analysts expected as iPhone sales bounced back from a recent slump. The tech giant’s stock rose 3.0 per cent in after-hours trading.

ENERGY: U.S. crude oil fell 11 cents to $52.70 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It gained 18 cents to $52.81 a barrel on Tuesday. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oil prices, lost 14 cents to $55.44 a barrel.

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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay contributed to this report.