Here’s why Citi says crypto prices have been weak recently
Updates at 04:10 GMT wth RBA rate decision, latest price moves
Investing.com-- Asian shares were mostly subdued on Tuesday as investors assessed a fragile U.S.-China trade truce and weighed renewed technology tensions, while stocks in Sydney remained lower after the Reserve Bank of Australia held interest rates unchanged as expected.
Markets in Seoul led regional losses, with the KOSPI falling after a sharp record rally in recent weeks.
Wall Street closed in a mixed fashion overnight, with gains in the tech sector after Amazon and OpenAI revealed a $38 billion cloud deal.
U.S. stock futures edged lower in Asian trading hours as of 04:10 GMT.
RBA holds rates steady as expected
The RBA left interest rates unchanged at 3.60% on Tuesday, as widely expected, as policymakers weighed a recent uptick in inflation against signs of a recovering economy and lingering global uncertainty.
Traders parsed the central bank’s statement for hints on when rate cuts could begin in 2026, though the RBA provided little insight.
The central bank adopted a cautious stance due to price pressures, adding that the labor market still remains a "little tight."
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index held 0.7% losses after the decision, as the move was largely priced in.
US-China tech export tensions in focus after trade truce
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that Nvidia’s most advanced Blackwell chips would be reserved for domestic use.
Trump said in a “60 Minutes” interview that Blackwell AI chips would “stay in the U.S.” and not be sold to China, underscoring the persistence of technology export controls even after the temporary trade truce reached last week.
Meanwhile, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng urged Washington to respect Beijing’s “red lines” following the recent Trump-Xi summit in South Korea, where both leaders agreed on a one-year truce and to resume high-level dialogue on trade, technology, and security.
Xie said the deal had “recalibrated” relations but warned that tensions could easily flare if core Chinese interests -- including Taiwan and human rights -- were challenged.
Investors remained cautious about the durability of the truce, noting that fundamental disagreements between the world’s two largest economies remain unresolved.
Asia stock markets dither; KOSPI slumps
China’s blue chip Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 fell 0.5%, while the Shanghai Composite index dipped 0.3%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was largely unchanged.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.5% on Tuesday after returning from a holiday, while the broader TOPIX index was muted.
South Korea’s KOSPI led losses, dropping nearly 2% after hitting record highs in the previous session.
Elsewhere, Singapore’s Straits Times index was little changed, while India’s Nifty 50 edged down 0.2%.