12 Aug 2015
Asian indices drop sharply on further Yuan devaluation
FXStreet (Mumbai) - Asian stocks witnessed steep losses on Wednesday, extending declines from the previous session, as risk appetite was once again crushed after China followed up with a second devaluation on Wednesday.
The USD/CNY reference rate was set 1.6% higher at 6.3306 on Wednesday, up from 6.2298 on Tuesday when the Chinese currency was devalued by 2%.
Risk-off profile dominates Asia
The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 is losing -1.20% at 20472. The benchmark Australian S&P/ASX 200 index trades -1.18% lower at 5417 points as the latest PBOC moves raise concerns over weak external Chinese demand. Australia is highly dependent on China for its exports.
While Chinese stocks also followed suit and edged lower. Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index loses -1.64% at 24091 while mainland China's benchmark Shanghai Composite loses -0.45% now and trades near 3910.
On Tuesday, the sudden PBOC price action sent commodity prices sharply lower, soured investor sentiment and sent equities crashing, and pushed commodity-based and riskier currencies such as the New Zealand dollar and Australian dollar down.
The USD/CNY reference rate was set 1.6% higher at 6.3306 on Wednesday, up from 6.2298 on Tuesday when the Chinese currency was devalued by 2%.
Risk-off profile dominates Asia
The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 is losing -1.20% at 20472. The benchmark Australian S&P/ASX 200 index trades -1.18% lower at 5417 points as the latest PBOC moves raise concerns over weak external Chinese demand. Australia is highly dependent on China for its exports.
While Chinese stocks also followed suit and edged lower. Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index loses -1.64% at 24091 while mainland China's benchmark Shanghai Composite loses -0.45% now and trades near 3910.
On Tuesday, the sudden PBOC price action sent commodity prices sharply lower, soured investor sentiment and sent equities crashing, and pushed commodity-based and riskier currencies such as the New Zealand dollar and Australian dollar down.