Asian stocks slipped Thursday amid a firmer dollar as traders weighed signs that Covid-19 flareups are hampering some of the region’s manufacturing and looked ahead to a U.S. payrolls report.
Japan and China were among the major equity markets posting modest losses. Purchasing managers’ indexes suggested curbs imposed to fight the virus had sapped output in parts of Asia.
U.S. and European equity contracts rose after the S&P 500 completed one of the best first halves since 1998 for U.S. shares. The recent spread of the delta virus variant is tempering some of the optimism around the global recovery.
The dollar advanced after its best month since March 2020 and Treasuries were steady. The payrolls report due Friday will provide a key gauge of economic progress, helping to shape expectations of when the Federal Reserve might start tapering stimulus.
Elsewhere, oil climbed ahead of a meeting between OPEC+ producers on output policy and as a stalemate in Iranian nuclear talks drags on. Markets start the second half facing challenges from Covid-19 variants and the prospect of diminishing monetary policy support amid inflation pressures.
