Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Thursday as investors await a high-stakes meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for clues on the future of US-China ties and global trade.
Trump landed in Beijing on Wednesday for a closely watched summit, accompanied by a group of US executives, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia chief Jensen Huang.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.27%, while the Topix fell 0.23%. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.38%, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose 1.31%.
Samsung shares rose by as much as 5.46%, reaching a new record. The tech giant suffered a short-term loss of $66 billion in market value on Wednesday after a labor dispute threatened one of the biggest strikes in the company’s history, SEEbiz reports.
It comes after the union threatened an 18-day strike from May 21 if its demands are not met. More than 41,000 workers are expected to join the strike, which was first announced at a rally on April 23.
South Korean Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol warned Thursday that a potential strike by Samsung workers could pose a major threat to the country’s economic growth, exports and financial markets.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.16%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 1.32%, while the CSI 300 added 0.27%.
