Protest Reports At China Iphone Factory Weighs On Sentiment

Asia Pac equities are mostly higher, China mainland stocks are underperforming though. US futures have drifted lower as the session has progressed, with Nasdaq futures near -0.25% at the time of writing.

• Bloomberg reported protests at the Foxconn plant in China, due to Covid related conditions. The plant is a large producer of Apple iphones. This has weighed on tech related sentiment in the region and US futures.
• China mainland stocks are lower, the CSI off 0.36%, while the Shanghai Composite is down by 0.20%. Covid developments today have centred on increased PCR testing requirements in major cities. This comes after the health authorities stated late yesterday the country should adhere to the CZS amid a severe outbreak.
• Reuters reported that property company Vanke will receive a 100bn yuan credit line from the Bank of Communications. The Shanghai Property Sub-index is up 0.25% so far today.
• The HSI is in positive territory but is away from best levels, last around +0.4%. The tech sub-index is +1.26%, amid better earnings results. The Kospi and Taiex are also higher, both indices up by a little over 0.5%. Japan markets are shut today.
• The ASX 200 is +0.60%, but NZ shares are down 0.85%, after the RBNZ delivered a hawkish 75bps rate hike and forecast a mild recession next year.