Asian markets mostly gain after encouraging data on China services activity

Asian markets mostly gained in early trading Wednesday after data showed improving services-sector activity in China last month. Markets started the day near session lows following Wall Street’s stumble after poor U.S. manufacturing data raised recession fears.

The private Caixin China services purchasing managers index rose to 52.1 in August from 51.6 in July, according to the Wall Street Journal. Data suggested that domestic demand was stronger than foreign demand and an employment measurement jumped.

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks slipped after a key gauge of the manufacturing sector signaled the first contraction of activity in three years.

On the trade-war front, tariff hikes by both the U.S. and China went into effect over the weekend, and President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged China to make a deal soon, since he said terms will be even tougher if he is reelected in 2020. CNBC reported Tuesday that Trump was so angered last month when he learned that China would raise tariffs on U.S. products in retaliation for fresh U.S. tariff hikes that he wanted to double tariffs on Chinese goods. He was reportedly talked out of it after top advisers warned of the effect that could have on the economy and the stock market.

Japan’s Nikkei

NIK, +0.12%

was last about flat, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index

HSI, +4.09%

jumped 1.4%. The Shanghai Composite

SHCOMP, +0.93%

rose 0.2% while the Shenzhen Composite

399106, +0.67%

fell 0.1%. South Korea’s Kospi

180721, +1.16%

gained 0.2%, while benchmark indexes in Taiwan

Y9999, +0.94%