Asian stocks decline amid US rate speculation, rising Mideast tensions

Asian stocks declined on Tuesday as investors weighed potential U.S. interest rate cuts and awaited earnings from Nvidia, a leading AI company. Meanwhile, escalating tensions in the Middle East and supply concerns supported oil prices and dampened risk sentiment.

Gold prices were just shy of a record peak, while the dollar steadied and the yen hovered near its highest in three weeks as investors sough safety amid geopolitical risks, with Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah exchanging fire on Sunday, News.Az reports citing Reuters.

Also supporting crude prices was Libya's eastern-based government announcement of the closure of all oil fields, which halted production and exports.

Investors are on edge ahead of Nvidia's earnings report on Wednesday, where anything short of a stellar forecast from the chipmaker could jolt investor confidence in the AI-fuelled rally.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.48% lower on Tuesday, inching away from the one-month high it touched in the previous session.

European bourses were due to open slightly higher, with Eurostoxx 50 futures rising 0.08%, German DAX futures up 0.13% and FTSE futures 0.35% higher. The London stock market will resume trade after a holiday on Monday.

China's blue stock index CSI30 fell 0.61% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was 0.27% lower, dragged by lacklustre earnings from Temu-parent PDD Holdings due to lower consumer spending.

Also weighing on sentiment was the move by Canada, following the lead of the United States and European Union, to impose a 100% tariff on imports of Chinese electric vehicles and a 25% tariff on imported steel and aluminium from China.

News.Az