Asia Pacific stocks dip as investors await China's June trade data; Singapore's economy slumps in second quarter - CNBC

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Stocks in Asia Pacific dipped in Tuesday morning trade, ahead of the release of China's trade data for June.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.7% in morning trade while the Topix index declined 0.38%. South Korea's Kospi shed 0.44%.

Shares in Australia also traded lower, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.66%.

Over in Southeast Asia, the Straits Times Index in Singapore dipped 0.53% in early trade. Singapore's economy contracted 12.6% in the second quarter as compared to a year ago, according to advance estimates by the Ministry of Trade and Industry released Tuesday.

Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.33% lower.

Investors awaited the release of Chinese trade data for June, expected on Tuesday. The data could provide more clues on China's economic recovery following the imposition of lockdowns earlier in the year to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday warned that "too many countries are headed in the wrong direction."

"In several countries across the world, we are now seeing dangerous increases in Covid-19 cases, and hospital wards filling up again," Tedros said. "It would appear that many countries are losing gains made as proven measures to reduce risk are not implemented or followed."

Later on Tuesday stateside, some of the largest banks in the U.S. such as Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase are set to report their earnings.

Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 closed 0.9% lower at 3,155.22 after briefly turning positive for 2020. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.1% to finish its trading day at 10,390.84 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a gain of 10.50 points, or less than 0.1%, to close at 26,085.80.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 96.555 after earlier bouncing from levels around 96.3.

The Japanese yen traded at 107.23 per dollar after weakening from the 106.8 against the greenback yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6936 after turbulent trading on Monday that saw it at levels above $0.698.

Oil prices fell in the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures down 1.54% to $42.06 per barrel. U.S. crude futures also declined 1.85% to $39.36 per barrel.

Here's a look at what's on tap:

• China: Trade data for June

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Asia Pacific stocks dip as investors await China's June trade data; Singapore's economy slumps in second quarter - CNBC
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