Shares were mostly lower in Asia in narrow trading Thursday after they barely budged on Wall Street following a mixed batch of earnings reports from big U.S. companies.
U.S. futures and oil prices also declined.
Japan reported that its trade deficit narrowed in March as exports rose more than expected, helped by a nearly 40% increase in the value of vehicle exports. But exports to China fell, reflecting the slow pace of the recovery from pandemic disruptions. Growth in imports also slowed.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 added 0.2% to 28,657.57 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was virtually unchanged at 7,362.20.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index rose 0.2% to 20,399.89. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.5% to 2,563.11 and the Shanghai Composite index declined 0.2% to 3,362.45.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 inched down by less than 0.1%, to 4,154.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 33,897.01, and the Nasdaq composite edged up less than 0.1%, to 12,157.23.
Tesla weighed heavily on the market after the electric-vehicle company cut prices for its two top-selling models, its fourth price cut in the U.S. this year. That could signal that Tesla is trying to spur sales amid shifting U.S. tax credits for electric vehicles. Tesla fell 2% before releasing its latest earnings report after trading closed.
Netflix slumped 3.2% after reporting weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, though its profit topped forecasts.
Elevance Health dropped 5.3% despite reporting stronger profit and revenue than expected.
So far, most companies have been beating profit forecasts to clear a bar that was set particularly low given the pressure on profits from high inflation and elevated interest rates that are slowing parts of the economy.
Intuitive Surgical leaped 10.9% for one of the biggest gains in the S&P 500 after delivering stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than expected.
Abbott Laboratories rose 7.8%, Nasdaq Inc. gained 3.1% and United Airlines flew 7.5% higher after they also topped Wall Street’s expectations for profits.
Particular focus has been on the health of banks after higher interest rates helped lead to the second- and third-largest U.S. bank failures in history last month.
The industry’s giants have largely reported better results than expected, with several saying they benefited from the industry’s turmoil as customers moved deposits to them and away from smaller banks that seemed at greater risk.
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