Friday 16 September, 10:00 AM BST (Thomson Financial): Asian markets ended
mixed, with the Japanese market falling as investors locked in some profits
after the share index reached new four-year highs on Thursday and ahead of a
shortened trading week ahead. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's market ended lower, while
the Korean market ended slightly higher, despite some losses in the technology
sector. Taiwan's market slipped, with flat panel makers under pressure owing
to an uncertain outlook, while the Australian market rose, as resources majors
and bank stocks posted solid gains.
Tokyo's Nikkei-225 Index fell by 28.10 points or 0.22% to 12,958.68, while
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Stock Index slipped by 57.82 points or 0.38% to
14,983.20. Korea's Kospi Index added 4.54 points or 0.39% to 1174.13, while
Taiwan's Weighted Index declined by 51.32 points or 0.84% to 6031.24.
Australia's All Ordinaries Index ended up by 33.00 points or 0.74% to 4499.40.
The Japanese equity market ended off its intraday lows, but the key share
index still ended with moderate losses. Investors took profits after the
market hit a new four-year high on Thursday and ahead of two public holidays
next week. Technology stocks were mostly lower, although Sony outperformed,
while oil groups also came under pressure following recent gains. On a
stronger note, banking stocks were strong.
Technology stocks were under pressure, with stocks such as Advantest,
Nikon and TDK ending lower, but consumer electronics group Sony gained after a
report in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun claimed the company was considering the
sale of its financial unit -which the firm denied. Elsewhere, banks also
provided some support, after ratings agency Moody's placed some banks'
financial ratings under review.
Hong Kong's market also fell amid some caution ahead of a long weekend and
next week's U.S. Federal Reserve rate setting meeting. Weakness was
concentrated in the properties sector, with Sun Hung Kai Properties falling
after it posted a 50% rise in full-year net profit to 10.37 billion Hong Kong
dollars as revenues rose to 22.945 billion dollars from 21.76 billion dollars
last year. Elsewhere, the utilities and the financial sectors were barely
changed.
Meanwhile, the Korean market came off its intraday lows and ended the day
in positive territory. Technology stocks were under pressure, continuing to
suffer from Samsung Electronics' recent warning over the LCD market outlook,
with Samsung Electronics, Hynix Semiconductor and LG Philips LCD all ending
the day lower. On a stronger note, the market received some support from
POSCO, which posted solid gains on rising steel prices, and from Kookmin Bank,
which also ended the day higher.
Taiwan's market fell after Wall Street's lacklustre performance overnight,
while concerns over a possible flat panel oversupply dragged down display
makers. The technology sector ended lower, with LCD screen markers such as AU
Optronics and Chi Mei Optoelectronics adding to Thursday's losses owing to an
uncertain outlook for the sector, while major chipmaker TSMC dropped, while
UMC was flat. Memory chipmakers were also under pressure, with Nanya
Technology and ProMos falling heavily.
The Australian market ended higher, underpinned by strong resources
stocks. BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto both posted solid gains, with a leading
brokerage upping its ratings and lifted its share price targets on the stocks
after lifting its iron ore price forecasts. Elsewhere, the market gained
additional support from major banking stocks, which also posted healthy gains,
with National Australia Bank and ANZ Bank among sector plays ending higher.
Olivier.Masson@thomson.com; Thomson Financial
This is Thomson Financial Corporate Services Asia Market Commentary. The
information herein is believed to be true and accurate. If you have any
questions please e-mail James Sang at James.Sang@tfn.com. We take no
responsibility for inaccurate information and reserve the right to update our
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http://www.thomsonfinancial.com.
SOURCE Thomson Financial
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