Thursday 15 December, 10:00 AM GMT (Thomson Financial): Asian markets
ended mostly higher, despite weakness in Japan's market which fell sharply
as the strengthening yen triggered selling of exporters, while Hong Kong's
market rose as the end of the current interest rate hike cycle nears.
Meanwhile, the Korean bourse closed higher, supported by local buying,
while Taiwan's market gained on bargain hunting. Finally, the Australian
market closed fractionally higher in derivative affected trade.
Tokyo's Nikkei-225 Index slumped 210.14 points or 1.36% to 15254.44, while
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Stock Index gained 82.76 points or 0.55% to
15059.02. Korea's Kospi Index inched up 3.41 points or 0.26% to 1337.68,
while Taiwan's Weighted Index firmed 23.12 points or 0.37% to 6258.47.
Australia's All Ordinaries Index edged up 8.10 points or 0.18% to 4575.40.
Japan's market closed sharply lower as the strengthening yen exerted
pressure on exporters in the wake of expectations of a near term end to
the current interest rate hike cycle in the U.S. Technology stocks and
auto makers fell heavily, while shipping stocks and brokerage houses also
came under strong selling pressure.
The rebound in the yen against the U.S. dollar triggered selling in
exporters, with the technology sector in the firing line as chip makers
Mitsubishi Electric, Toshiba and Oki Electric fell heavily, while the
world's largest maker of chip testing devices, Advantest dropped sharply.
Auto makers suffered from the sell off, with Fuji Heavy Industries' share
price falling, with Honda and Toyota following suit.
Stocks related to exporting, such as shipping stocks were dragged down,
with Kawasaki Kisen, Mitsui OSK and Nippon Yusen all sinking. Brokerage
houses fell on reports that they may give back profits made from Mizuho's
botched J-Com trade, as the wrangling over the mistake continued, with
Nikko Cordial slumping, while Daiwa Securities and Nomura Holding
plummeted.
Hong Kong's market ended higher as the property sector supported broad
gains owing to the perceived easing of interest rate hike fears. Henderson
Land led the sector gains, with Wharf Holdings and Sun Hung Kai Properties
also rising, while banking stocks also found interest, with heavyweight
HSBC Holdings rising, along with BOC Hong Kong.
In Korea, the key share index ended marginally higher as local investor
buying offset sales from foreign players in trade lacking specific themes.
In the auto sector, Hyundai Motor continued its strong run, with Kia
Motors also accelerating ahead, while in the technology sector, Hynix
Semiconductor surged higher, with Samsung Electronics closing flat and LG
Philips LCD dropping after major shareholder Philips divested some shares.
Elsewhere, telecom stock KTF fell on profit taking after its recent
outperformance, stemming from hopes of a tie up with Japan's NTT DoCoMo.
Meanwhile, Taiwan's market closed higher on bargain hunting and rotational
buying interest in technology stocks spurred by seasonal demand. Mobile
phone makers Arima Communications and High Tech Computers rose strongly,
while handset component makers Inchia Technology and Silitech Technology
also surged. Elsewhere, UMC picked up from yesterday's falls, helped by a
note from a leading broker that said the stock was oversold following its
restatement of earnings, though TSMC slipped.
Finally, the market in Australia closed fractionally higher in volatile
trade affected by the expiry of futures and options contracts. Banking
stocks were mixed, with Commonwealth Bank rising, National Australia Bank
flat and ANZ falling, while the resources sector also lacked direction,
with BHP Billiton up but Rio Tinto down. Newcrest Mining fell in-line with
the fall in the gold price, though Lihir Gold managed a modest rise.
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
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SOURCE Thomson Financial Corporate Group
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