Tuesday 11 October, 10:00 AM BST (Thomson Financial): Asian markets end
mixed as some markets were lifted by positive local news, while others
followed Wall Street lower. Japan's market closed sharply higher on stronger-
than-expected machinery orders, while the market in Hong Kong was closed due
to a national holiday. Meanwhile, the Korean bourse rose on upbeat comments
from the Bank of Korea, while Taiwan's market was mixed. Finally, the market
in Australia tracked falls in the U.S.
Tokyo's Nikkei-225 Index soared 328.97 points or 2.49% to 13,556.71.
Korea's Kospi Index jumped 17.09 points or 1.39% to 1,244.27, while Taiwan's
Weighted Index eased 15.25 points or 0.25% to 6,066.59. Australia's All
Ordinaries Index slipped 35.60 points or 0.80% to 4,392.30.
Japan's market rose sharply boosted by strong machinery orders data, with
September machine tool orders up 2.2% year-on-year and rising for the thirty-
sixth consecutive month. There were broad based gains across the market as
investors also took comfort from the lower house of Parliament's passing of
the postal privatisation bill by a large majority.
Stocks that benefited from this strong data included construction
machinery maker Komatsu, which powered ahead, along with Toshiba Machinery and
Fanuc, which both rose, while banking stocks also performed well, with Mizuho,
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Resona all posting sterling gains.
Steel makers and shipping companies were supported by bargain hunting
following recent falls, with Nippon Steel and JFE holdings both closing
higher, while Nippon Yusen and Mitsui Fudosan both gained. Meanwhile, Tomen
roared ahead after a report in a local newspaper said that the trading house
plans a merger with Toyota Tsusho.
In Korea, the key share index rose strongly as investors were buoyed by
upbeat comments from the Bank of Korea governor, after the bank raised the
interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.5%. Banks gained weight on the rise,
with Kookmin Bank up after a report that it is interested in buying Korea
Exchange Bank, which was also up, while chipmakers also advanced, Samsung and
Hynix closing higher. On a weaker note, LG Philips LCD slipped after it
reported third quarter net profits down 26% year-on-year to 227 billion won
from 291 billion won a year earlier, while elsewhere, steel maker Posco
slipped, despite reporting third quarter net profit of 1.06 trillion won
compared to 1.01 trillion won in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, Taiwan's market ended lower as gains in the financial sector
were offset by losses in heavyweight technology stocks. UMC and TSMC both fell
heavily, in the wake of falls in their counterparts on NASDAQ, however, Chi
Mei Optoelectronics rose sharply following its announcement Friday that its
consolidated monthly revenue in September rose 76% year-on-year to 16.5
billion Taiwanese dollars. Financial stocks were supported by comments from
the Taiwan President reaffirming commitment to financial reforms, with Mega
Financial, Chinatrust Financial and Taishin Financial all gaining.
Finally, the market in Australia fell as investors took a lead from the
overnight falls on Wall Street and a negative National Australia Bank business
survey, which indicated risks of increasing underlying inflation. Resources
heavyweights BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto dropped on falls in some metal prices
overnight, while banks also suffered, with ANZ, National Australia Bank and
Commonwealth Bank all falling. Elsewhere, auto parts maker Pacifica slipped
following the bankruptcy of its major U.S. customer Delphi.
Ian.Littlewood@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
reports. For more information about Thomson Financial visit us on-line at
http://www.thomsonfinancial.com.
SOURCE Thomson Financial Corporate Group
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