Asia-Pacific stocks mixed as U.S. hiring slows to 2-year low

June 05, 2025 (MLN): Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Thursday, after private sector hiring in the U.S. hit its lowest level in over two years, raising concerns that trade policy uncertainty could be weighing on the world’s largest economy.

A report from payrolls processing firm ADP showed that payrolls rose only 37,000 for the month, less than the downwardly revised 60,000 in April and below the consensus forecast of 110,000 that economists polled by Dow Jones had forecast, as per CNBC.

South Korean markets extended gains from the previous session, with the benchmark Kospi advancing 1.33% after hitting a more than 10-month high earlier in the day, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.79%.

Analysts at Nomura expect the Kospi to hit 2,900 by the end of the year, fueled by capital market reforms President Lee Jae-myung is expected to undertake. It is currently at around 2,800.

Lee is also expected to “focus on lifting domestic demand by quickly rolling out a second extra budget in July,” the bank’s analysts, led by Jeong Woo Park, wrote in a Wednesday note.

“We expect a more expansionary fiscal policy during his presidency than in the government’s long-term fiscal plan (an average 3.7% y-o-y rise in spending over the next three years),” they added.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.42%, while the broader Topix index lost 1.02%

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.14%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.46% while mainland China’s CSI 300 was little changed.

India’s benchmark Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex started the day flat. The Reserve Bank of India is expected to cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter-percentage point to 5.75% on Friday after a two-day meeting.

U.S. futures were little changed after the Dow Jones Industrial Average snapped a four-day win streak.

Overnight stateside, the 30-stock Dow lost 91.90 points, or 0.22%, ending at 42,427.74. The blue-chip average snapped a four-day winning run.

Meanwhile, the broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.01% and closed at 5,970.81, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.32% and settled at 19,460.49.

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