Investing.com - Asian Stocks fell in morning trade on Wednesday as stalled talks in the Sino-U.S. trade war continue to sour sentiment for risk assets.
China’s Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component both fell 0.3% by 10:30 PM ET (02:30 GMT). Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.6%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 1.3%.
Automaker Toyota Motor Corp (T:7203) made headlines after the Nikkei business daily reported that the company is considering investing $550 million in Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing.
The company might also launch a new mobility-services company in China, according to Nikkei.
South Korea’s KOSPI declined by 1.4%.
Down under, Australia’s ASX 200 dropped 0.8%.
Beijing is “seriously” considering hitting back at the U.S. with its dominance of rare earth, according to multiple Chinese media.
Currently, the U.S. relies on China for about 80% of its rare earth, according to Bloomberg.
Shares of Asian rare-earth companies surged following the news. China Northern Rare Earth Group High-Tech Co Ltd (SS:600111) surged 6%, while the Australia-listed Lynas Corporation Ltd (ASX:LYC) jumped as much as 11%.
In other news, the Huawei saga continues to develop. In the latest episode, the company filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government and challenged the constitutionality of a U.S. law banning federal agencies from buying its products.
The company has today filed a "motion for summary judgment", asking the court to overturn part of the National Defense Authorization Act.
Banning Huawei using cybersecurity as an excuse “will do nothing to make networks more secure. They provide a false sense of security, and distract attention from the real challenges we face,” said Song Liuping, Huawei’s chief legal officer. “Politicians in the U.S. are using the strength of an entire nation to come after a private company,” Song noted. “This is not normal. Almost never seen in history.”
Overnight, U.S. stocks closed lower, with the Dow and S&P 500 index dropping almost 1%.