FX.co ★ China Stock Market Tipped To Open Under Pressure On Friday

The China stock market has seen a decline in two out of three trading days, following a brief winning streak that added just 5 points, or 0.2 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index currently stands slightly above the 2,930-point mark and faces potential further declines on Friday.

The global outlook for Asian markets is pessimistic, fueled by concerns over economic slowdown. Both European and U.S. markets ended with significant losses, setting an expectation for Asian markets to mirror this trend.

On Thursday, the SCI experienced a slight decline, with losses in property and resource stocks being balanced by gains in financial and oil sectors. Specifically, the index dropped 6.36 points, or 0.22 percent, to close at 2,932.39, after fluctuating between 2,928.83 and 2,947.88. Meanwhile, the Shenzhen Composite Index fell 8.59 points, or 0.53 percent, to finish at 1,602.19.

In terms of individual performances, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rose by 0.51 percent, Bank of China increased by 0.64 percent, China Construction Bank and Bank of Communications each went up by 0.54 percent, China Merchants Bank slightly dipped by 0.06 percent, and China Life Insurance edged up by 0.09 percent. On the other hand, Jiangxi Copper fell by 0.42 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) decreased by 0.87 percent, Yankuang Energy declined by 1.07 percent, and Huaneng Power dropped by 2.64 percent. PetroChina improved by 0.67 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) climbed 1.08 percent, while China Shenhua Energy fell by 0.86 percent, Gemdale plummeted 3.16 percent, Poly Developments decreased sharply by 4.08 percent, and China Vanke tumbled by 2.68 percent.

Wall Street provided a broadly negative lead as major averages initially opened slightly higher on Thursday but quickly turned downwards, ending significantly in the red. The Dow fell by 494.82 points, or 1.21 percent, to close at 40,347.97, the NASDAQ dropped by 405.26 points, or 2.30 percent, to settle at 17,194.14, and the S&P 500 lost 75.62 points, or 1.37 percent, to finish at 5,446.68.

The sell-off in the U.S. was driven by disappointing economic data, which sparked concerns about the U.S. economic outlook, overshadowing any optimism for an imminent interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve. Notably, a report from the Institute for Supply Management revealed that U.S. manufacturing activity unexpectedly contracted at a faster pace in July. Additionally, the Labor Department reported that first-time claims for unemployment benefits surged to their highest level in nearly a year last week.

Oil futures also ended lower on Thursday, impacted by disappointing economic data and concerns over future oil demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September settled down by $1.60, or approximately 2.05 percent, at $76.31 a barrel.