Asian markets mixed as traders stuggle to build on rally

HONG KONG: Markets were mixed in Asia on Thursday as investors applied the brakes to a recent rally that has some worried valuations may have run a little too high.

The underwhelming performance followed a tepid lead from Wall Street, where only the Dow managed to eke out a gain despite blowout profits at top banks that gave a healthy start to the much-anticipated earnings season.

Observers also said the Chinese central bank's continued push to suck up liquidity from the financial system to keep a lid on debt issuance also showed Beijing was happy enough with its recovery that it was pulling back on last year's stimulus measures.

After hitting a series of records or multi-year highs in recent months, world markets are struggling to push any higher without any new major catalysts, with the latest round of corporate reporting now the main focus.

Traders are also keeping an eye on developments in the pandemic crisis as infections in some countries rise and after vaccine programmes were dealt a blow by blood clot concerns over the Johnson & Johnson jab as well as that from AstraZeneca.

Shanghai and Hong Kong led losses in Asia, while Sydney, Manila and Wellington were also in the red.

Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei and Jakarta rose.

But Patrik Schowitz at JP Morgan Asset Management warned he was less upbeat about regional equities, which he said were dominated by growth and tech firms.

Those sectors have come under pressure of late owing to expectations that interest rates will rise as the world economy rebounds.