Asian stocks close mostly down
HONG KONG, Nov 20: Asian stocks closed mostly down on Tuesday but trimmed losses with a clutch of key bourses, including Tokyo and Hong Kong, bouncing into the black despite concerns about the US economy.
The Japanese stock market ended up 1.12 per cent, Hong Kong was 1.13 per cent higher, Shanghai edged up 0.45 percent and Singapore rose 0.78 per cent.
But Seoul slipped 1.1 percent, Sydney fell 1.7 per cent, Mumbai shed 1.8 per cent and Manila dropped 2.9 per cent in the wake of a slide on Wall Street on Monday.
TOKYO: Japanese share prices closed up 1.12 per cent, swinging back strongly from an early fall as investors decided that the sell-off was overdone, dealers said.
The market mood shifted on growing speculation that the US Federal Reserve will again cut interest rates and by a report that the US central bank will give an upbeat assessment of economic growth.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Nikkei-225 index gained 168.96 points to close at 15,211.52. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares gained 12.66 points or 0.87 percent to 1,469.27.
The Hang Seng index closed up 311.04 points at 27,771.21, off a low of 26,404.28 and a high of 27,851.31. Turnover was 146.41 billion Hong Kong dollars (18.77 billion US).
China Life finished up 0.85 at 43.45, CCB was up 0.13 at 7.44 and CNOOC rose 0.74 at 13.22.
HSBC was down 0.30 at 135.2, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing lost 1.4 to 228.20 and Hutchison Whampoa was flat at 87.90.
SYDNEY: Australian share prices closed down 1.7 per cent after a fall in US stocks, dealers said.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 109.8 points at 6,425.4, while the broader All Ordinaries closed down 111.1 points or 1.7 per cent at 6,490.2.
About 1.60 billion shares worth 6.67 billion Australian dollars (5.90 billion US) changed hands, with 383 stocks closing up, 934 closing down and 320 unchanged.
SINGAPORE: Singapore share prices closed 0.78 per cent higher, mirroring regional gains on hopes the Federal Reserve will release a set of upbeat forecast on the US economy, dealers said.
The main Straits Times Index rose 26.55 points to 3,438.27 on volume of 2.26 billion shares worth 2.88 billion Singapore dollars (2.0 billion US).
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed down 0.6 per cent but off lows after a rebound in Asia amid reports the Federal Reserve will publish upbeat economic forecasts for the US, dealers said.
The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) was down 8.21 points at 1,371.70 off a low of 1,359.73.
Decliners outnumbered advancers 520 to 286, with 283 stocks unchanged.
Trading volume was 1.2 billion shares valued at 1.6 billion ringgit (473 million US dollars).
JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices closed 0.8 per cent lower as an Asian rebound helped the local bourse trim earlier losses caused by Wall Street’s overnight slump, dealers said.
A ruling late Monday that Singapore’s Temasek Holdings had violated Indonesia’s anti-monopoly law through investments linked to cell phone firms Telkomsel and Indosat also weighed in sentiment, they said.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand share prices closed down 1.15 percent following another slump in overseas markets, dealers said.
The benchmark NZX-50 index fell 47.37 points to close at 4,067.30 on turnover worth 149.0 million dollars (112.0 million US).
Obviously a pretty strong lead from offshore markets being sharply negative, the Dow Jones closing below the support level of 13,000, so we’ll be watching that tonight, said Suzanne Kinnaird of Forsyth Barr.
MUMBAI: Indian share prices fell 1.8 per cent as investors sold blue-chip companies for a fourth straight day on concerns about the US economy, dealers said.
The benchmark 30-share Sensex index fell 352.56 points to 19,280.8, slipping from the day’s high of 19,714.22.
The market fell in the absence of fresh buying triggers, said Apurva Shah, head of research with broker Prabhudas Lilladher.--AFP