Newscasts - Asia Markets Briefing: Stimulus measures give China stocks a lift

China Telecom

21/10/2024 10:10

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Source: 'Reuters - Business videos'

Description: Stimulus measures from the Chinese government got mainland stocks
off to a positive start to the week. Bourses elsewhere in Asia had a mixed
day, ahead of another busy week of corporate earnings.
Short Link: https://refini.tv/48eFGm9

Video Transcript:

Stimulus measures give China stocks a lift. Welcome to Asia Markets Briefing.
I'm Thomas Warner. Measures from the Chinese government put mainland stocks on
track for a positive start to the week. The People's Bank of China cut
benchmark lending rates as anticipated, taking the one year and the five-year
loan prime rate down at 25 basis points. They were the first cuts to lending
rates since July and come as part of a wider package to stimulate the economy.
The Beijing Stock Exchange revealed plans to give greater support to the
country’s tech SME's. They'll be given training and access to finance to
help them get listed more quickly. And more than 20 already listed Chinese
companies have announced plans to tap special central bank lending for share
purchases. That's according to exchange filings. The People's Bank of China
only kicked off the $42 billion funding scheme on Friday. It's designed to
allow companies all their major shareholders to borrow cheaply to fund share
buybacks or to build their holdings. Beijing Stock Exchange 50 jumped 14% to a
new record high, though the gains in Shanghai were more modest. The Korean
KOSPI ended a run of three straight losses ahead of SK Hynix's earnings later
this week. Every sector of the Hang Seng was down. That's except mining gold
hit another new record high on Monday and investors in the Nikkei proved
cautious ahead of next weekend's election. India's NIFTY 50 also traded lower,
weighed down by troubling news from two of its banks. Shares of Kotak Mahindra
and RBL Banks slumped on Monday as the lenders reported a jump in bad loans
that hurt their second quarter profits. The head of Saudi Aramco says that
he's “fairly bullish” on China's oil demand, especially in light of
the government stimulus package. Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said on the sidelines
of the Singapore International Energy Week Conference, that China will need
the oil to feed its industry. Saudi Arabia is the number two oil exporter to
China, behind Russia, and holds stakes in some Chinese refiners. Oil prices
themselves edged up in Asian trading following a more than 7% drop last week.
Brent was trading at around $73.50 a barrel at last check up around $0.50 on
the trading day. Prices fell heavily during the week to Friday, as fear of an
Israeli attack on Iran's oil infrastructure eased. But the conflict in the
Middle East appeared to intensify over the weekend, after Israel said that it
is now preparing to attack more sites in the Lebanese capital of Beirut.
Looking ahead to tomorrow, and China Telecom is due to report its Q3 earnings.
The Shanghai market's third largest telecom is forecast to record low single
digit growth in both revenue and profits. And finally, Indonesia's newly
minted leader, President Prabowo Subianto officially swore in his cabinet on
Monday. It's a team that analysts say reflects continuity with his
predecessors’ main policies. Prabowo took office on Sunday as the 8th
Indonesian president, promising to eradicate corruption and to try and reach
self-sufficiency in food and in energy. And that's it from your Asia Markets
Briefing