TOKYO - Asian stocks sagged on Friday ahead of key Chinese data that could provide more clues on how heavily the U.S.-Sino trade war is weighing on the economy, while oil prices were supported by supply concerns after attacks on tankers in the Gulf of Oman.
China will release May industrial production along with retail sales and investment numbers at 0700 GMT, and analysts expect any improvement from April’s downbeat readings will be mostly marginal. Despite expectations that Beijing will announce more support measures soon, nervousness ahead of the activity data and worries over trade pushed the Shanghai Composite Index down 0.3%. But Australian stocks added 0.15% and Japan’s Nikkei climbed 0.3%.
Wall Street shares have had a strong run in June on hopes the Federal Reserve will ease monetary policy soon to counter pressure on the U.S. economy from the escalating trade war. The S&P 500 index is up about 5% so far for the month. “There is a large degree of uncertainty going into next week’s FOMC meeting as market reaction will differ significantly depending on whether the Fed hints toward easing policy,” said Shusuke Yamada, chief Japan FX and equity strategist at Bank Of America Merrill Lynch.In commodities, Brent crude futures rose 0.6% to $61.69 per barrel after rallying 2.3% the previous day.
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