The Greek tragedy has spilled all over Asia, with investors fleeing equities markets on fears the selloff may last longer as the situation in Greece turns to worse. Despite the announcement of a rate cut and another reduction in the reserve requirement slapped on banks, Chinese shares are not spared, as they officially entered the bear market territory, according to Bloomberg. Other major markets are also in the red notably Japan and Hong Kong.
Despite a healthy first quarter GDP, which rose at a revised 3.9% from a year ago and up from an initial 2.4% reading, Asia’s second-biggest economy can certainly use a boost from Japanese firms who continued to hoard money because the latest data on industrial output is not that promising. Some economists are worried this could lead to a contraction in GDP growth in the second quarter of the year, according to CNBC.
Investors will focus on what German Chancellor Angela Merkel might say about Greece and its possible exit from the eurozone in a speech schedule later in the day. Read on…
Asian shares sink as Greece finds it hard to stay afloat. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 2.1% as investors exited from equities markets in the region on fears shares may drop further after Greece failed to convince creditors to throw in another rescue package to prevent the country from drowning on its debts. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 3.3%. while the Nikkei slipped 2.9%, and the Hang Seng Index shed nearly 3%. Bloomberg/CNBC
Toyota output falls. Worldwide production dropped 8.3% last month from a year earlier to 753,321 vehicles. The world’s top carmaker by sales last year may have a hard time holding on to the crown because of falling production. Financial Times (paywall)
Shanghai ANE Logistics lure global investors. Caryle Group, Goldman Sachs and China Retnaissance are investing money into the Chinese logistics firm, which has a network of 5,000 franchise stores in China. The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
Japan industrial production down, retail sales up. Last month, industrial production dropped 2.2%, a steeper decline than the forecast 0.8% drop. Retail sales went up 3% in May from a year ago, higher than the 2.3% estimate. Reuters/CNBC
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