Investing.com - Asian stocks were mixed in afternoon trade on Tuesday as traders awaited the potential start of fresh U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.
South Korea’s KOSPI gained 0.4% as index heavyweight Samsung (KS:005930) said it is set to release a foldable smartphone sometime this year, CNBC reported citing DJ Koh, CEO of the company.
In an interview with CNBC, Koh added that the device could unveiled at the Samsung Developers Conference in November.
China’s Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component rose 1.1% and 0.6% respectively by 2:00AM ET (06:00 GMT).
The Trump administration may implement tariffs on as much as $200 billion in additional Chinese products as soon as Thursday, according to reports. The U.S. slapped duties on $34 billion of Chinese goods in July, before imposing a new round of tariffs on a further $16 billion of Chinese products on Aug. 23, while U.S. President Donald Trump warned that he may eventually target the entire $500 billion in Chinese exports to the U.S.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.8%.
Cookies Quartet, a Hong Kong brand by former Miss Hong Kong, Charlene Tse Ning, submitted a listing application on the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing Limited.
The company’s listing documents showed that as of the end of March this year, its profit reached US$3.143 million, down 16% year-on-year. The revenue of the firm dropped in the past two years, down by 1.2% to US$10.3 million in 2017, while its gross margin stood at 69.5%, down by 0.8%.
Established in 2008, Cookies Quartet is the second largest cookie retailer in Hong Kong in terms of revenue, accounting for 13.6% market share. The company features palmier and butter cookies, comprised of 63.3% and 32% of its revenue last year.
Cookies Quartet is among the eight companies that apply for going public in Hong Kong this month.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.1% after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the country would proceed with the sales tax hike to 8% next year “by all means.”
Down under, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.4% lower.
Looking ahead, the U.S. August nonfarm payrolls report is due on Friday, with analysts predicting creation of 191,000 jobs last month, while the unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 3.9%.