Thursday 20 October, 10:00 AM BST (Thomson Financial): Asian markets
gained as Wall Street gained overnight. Japan's market strengthened on
improved sentiment stemming from Wall Street's gains, while Hong Kong's
market rose on bargain hunting. The Korean bourse rose on a technical
rebound from losses the previous day, while in Taiwan, technology stocks
followed their U.S. counterparts higher. Finally, the market in Australia
was flat as lower commodity prices offset positive sentiment from Wall
Street.
Tokyo's Nikkei-225 Index rose 60.97 points or 0.46% to 13,190.46, while
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Stock Index was up by 36.18 points or 0.25% to
14,408.94. Korea's Kospi Index gained 9.10 points or 0.79% to 1162.23,
while Taiwan's Weighted Index rallied 53.84 points or 0.95% to 5748.00.
Australia's All Ordinaries Index ended barely lower, by 0.80 points or
0.02% to 4345.10.
Japan's market finished higher to end a six day losing streak as investors
were buoyed by gains on Wall Street overnight. Sectors in focus were,
banks and non-life insurers, both rising, however auto makers came under
heavy selling pressure.
The largest bank in Japan by assets, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group made
solid gains, with Resona also up, though Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
closed unchanged. Meanwhile, Japan's largest non-life insurer, Millea
Holdings advanced, with Sumitomo Mitsui Insurance and Sompo Japan
Insurance also gaining weight.
In the automobiles sector, Nissan fell after its chief executive warned
that poor U.S. business conditions could drag it and the whole industry
down, while Toyota fell after announcing a recall of 1.27 million cars as
a result of a fault. Elsewhere, consumer electronics company Sanyo
Electric fell heavily after announcing that it would release earnings half
a month later than usual, adding to fears about its financial health.
Hong Kong's market, recovered from Wednesday's falls following the rise in
U.S. markets as investors sought out bargains. In the banking sector, HSBC
Holdings rose, along with Hang Seng Bank, though BOC Hong Kong ended
lower, while the property sector was mixed as Henderson Land and Sun Hung
Kai both rose, however, Cheung Kong Holdings and Hang Lung Properties fell
back.
In Korea, the key share index rose in a technical rebound from Wednesday's
losses, with investors boosted by gains on Wall Street and the weakening
of oil prices. In the technology sector, Samsung Electronics rose, with
Hynix Semiconductor also gaining, while banking stocks were mostly higher,
with Kookmin Bank, Woori and Shinhan all rising. Elsewhere, steel maker
Posco strengthened on bargain hunting, while in the automobiles sector,
Kia Motors rose, though Hyundai Motor fell back.
Meanwhile, in Taiwan shares bounced back from recent losses, led by
technology stocks, which tracked their counterparts on Nasdaq higher.
Nanya Technology gained ground after the DRAM maker reported
better-than-expected results for the third quarter to September and an
upbeat forecast for the fourth quarter, while AU Optronics tracked
overnight gains in its American Depositary Receipts, with Chi Mei
Optoelectronics also rising.
Finally, the market in Australia closed flat, failing to follow U.S.
markets higher as lower commodity prices and concerns about the future
direction of the market weighed on sentiment. Gold miners suffered from
the sharp drop in the precious metal's price, with Newcrest Mining and
Lihir Gold both posting heavy losses. Oil stocks also lost out from falls
in oil prices, with Oil Search and Woodside Petroleum ending down.
Meanwhile, in resources, BHP Billiton lost ground, though Rio Tinto was
up, while banking stocks rose, with ANZ Bank and National Australia Bank
ending higher.
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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