News Code : 45629

Asia petrochemical shares rise on US' Biden transition, vaccine progress.

Asia petrochemical shares rise on US' Biden transition, vaccine progress.

 

Petrotahlil --Asian petrochemical shares were mostly higher on Tuesday after US President-elect Joe Biden was given the go-ahead to begin the transition process in the White House, and on news of a third effective coronavirus vaccine.

At 03:00 GMT, Asahi Kasei Corp was up by 3.11% in Tokyo, LG Chem was 2.81% higher in Seoul and Sinopec was up by 0.28% in Hong Kong.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was up by 2.56%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was 0.08% lower and Singapore's Straits Times Index rose by 0.62%.

Company/Stock Exchange  (At 03:00 GMT) % Change
Nikkei 225 (Tokyo) 2.56%
Asahi Kasei Corp 3.11%
JXTG Holdings, Inc 2.40%
Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp 2.67%
Mitsui Chemicals, Inc 1.87%
Hang Seng Index (Hong Kong) -0.08%
China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) 0.28%
PetroChina 1.16%
KOSPI Composite Index (Seoul) 0.70%
OCI Company 3.31%
SK Innovation 1.62%
LG Chem 2.81%
Lotte Chemical Corp -0.87%
Hanwha Corp 1.69%
TSEC weighted index (Taipei) -0.20%
Formosa Petrochemical Corp 0.84%
Nan Ya Plastics Corp -0.60%
Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp -0.63%
STI Index (Singapore) 0.62%
Wilmar International -0.46%
Olam International 2.72%
FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (Kuala Lumpur) -0.49%
SSE Composite Index (Shanghai) -0.37%
Jakarta Composite Index 0.40%
PT. Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk 0.85%
SET Index (Thailand) 2.24%
PTT Global Chemical 4.13%
Indorama Ventures -0.82%
IRPC 0.00%
The Siam Cement 1.92%
Thai Oil 1.54%

US General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy wrote to Biden that a hand-over process can begin, effectively dispelling one major uncertainty in the market.

Biden will be sworn in as the next US president on 20 January 2021.

In a Twitter post on Monday, US President Donald Trump said the federal agency overseeing the handover must "do what needs to be done", after weeks of contesting the results of the 3 November presidential election.

"After weeks of inaction, the General Service Administration on Monday finally acknowledged Joe Biden as the apparent winner of the presidential election, and the designation triggers a formal transition process, giving Biden and his team access to current agency officials, briefing books, some $6m in funding and other government resources," said Singapore-based UOB Global Economics & Markets Research.

Asian stock markets were tracking the Wall Street’s rally overnight.

US shares surge on Monday as investors looked past surging coronavirus infections and hospitalisation rates in the country and focused on the positives of vaccine developments.

UK-headquartered pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca on Monday said that its coronavirus vaccine could be as much as 90% effective.

The first two vaccines developed separately by Pfizer and Moderna have a higher effectivity rate of 95% based on results of late-stage trials.

"AstraZeneca will now immediately prepare regulatory submission of the data to authorities around the world that have a framework in place for conditional or early approval," the company said in a statement.

Coronavirus cases have been on an uptick in Asia as cases in Japan hit a record high, prompting Tokyo to raise its alert to the highest level on 19 November.

South Korea has also tightened restrictions amid signs that the country is experiencing a third wave of infections. The country on Monday reported another daily rise of more than 200 new infections, bringing its total to more than 31,000 cases.

Starting Tuesday, strict measures were re-imposed in Seoul and nearby regions, including closures of bars and nightclubs, limits on religious gatherings and on-site dining at restaurants.

As of 23 November, the global tally of coronavirus cases stood at more than 58.4m, with the death toll at above 1.3m, according to data from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

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