Mixed In Asia; Chinese PMIs Await

Major regional equity indices are mixed at writing, with Chinese and Hong Kong stocks struggling as participants await the release of official PMI data on Wednesday following well-documented challenges to the Chinese economy in August.

• The Hang Seng (-1.3%) leads the way lower on losses across ~85% of its constituents. China-based tech has borne the brunt of the selling pressure (HSTECH: -2.1%), with the likes of Bilibili (-5.1%) and Trip.com (-4.6%) struggling.
• A note that the stocks of Chinese companies with listings in the U.S. have declined despite the announcement of a Sino-U.S. audit deal last week, with evident caution amongst investors amidst historically elevated bilateral tensions.
• The CSI300 is 0.5% worse off, with losses in high-beta consumer staples and healthcare posing the most drag. Elsewhere, developer stocks bucked the broader downtrend, with the CSI300 Real Estate Index (+1.5%) rallying after hitting two-week lows on Monday.
• The Nikkei 225 is 1.1% better off on gains in over 90% of its constituents, although the move higher comes nowhere close to unwinding Monday’s 2.7% lower close. IT stocks outperformed, led by gains in index heavyweight Tokyo Electron (+1.6%).
• E-minis sit 0.2-0.3% better off at writing, consolidating a little above their respective one-month lows established on Monday.