Stock market today: Asian stocks are mixed after Dow sets a new record

Asian stocks were mixed on Tuesday as investors grappled with weak economic data from China and waited to see the outcome of a top Communist Party policy meeting in Beijing.

U.S. futures rose while oil prices fell.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.2% to 41,275.08 after reopening from a holiday.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index declined 1.4% to 17,760.36 and the Shanghai Composite index fell 0.1% to 2,970.945.

Markets were still digesting a set of weaker economic data of China released Monday, when the government reported that annual economic growth had fallen from 5.3% in the first quarter to 4.7% in the April to June quarter.

This led some economists to cut their growth forecasts. Goldman Sachs revised its forecast for China’s annual economic growth to 4.9% from a previous estimate of 5.0%. JP Morgan cut their full-year outlook for China’s 2024 GDP growth to 4.7% from an earlier projection of 5.2%.

Further policies were expected to be released during this week’s four-day economic meeting, a closed-door plenary meeting of the ruling Communist Party. It is expected to set strategies and policies for the coming decade, in line with leader Xi Jinping's push to pursue advances in future technologies.

South Korea’s Kospi added 0.2% to 2,865.21 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.2% lower to 7,999.30.

On Monday, Wall Street’s positive momentum kept driving it upward.

The S&P 500 rose 0.3% to 5,631.22, finishing just shy of its all-time high set last week. It’s coming off its 10th winning week in the last 12, lifted in large part by expectations that inflation is slowing enough to convince the Federal Reserve to ease interest rates soon.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5% to 40,211.72 and set its own record, while