Asian stocks markets were mixed in early trading Thursday after muted moves in the U.S. and Europe overnight. The Nikkei started lower, hampered by a further uptick for the yen, but Chinese stocks advanced despite rising trade tensions.
As Japanese stocks lagged amid fresh U.S.-China trade concerns and a stronger yen, the dollar
USDJPY, -0.13%
fell to session lows of ¥110.78 versus ¥110.95 in late New York trading. The Nikkei
NIK, -0.27%
was off 0.3%, with the oil/coal-products sector leading the way lower, skidding 2.3% following the overnight slump in oil prices. Japan Petroleum
1662, -8.32%
tumbled 8.5%. Japanese skincare giant Shiseido
4911, +6.56%
rebounded strongly after selling off sharply Wednesday following its earnings report, in which it raised ita yearly guidance. A day after finishing down 4.4%, the stock was up 6.5% Thursday. Shiseido shares have soared 48% this year.
After starting with modest declines, Chinese stocks bounced back after Wednesday’s sizable pullback. Perhaps helping sentiment, inflation numbers came in higher than expected last month, a possible sign that demand is holding up. The Shanghai Composite
SHCOMP, +1.80%
was up 0.8% and the Shenzhen Composite
399106, +2.62%
jumped 1.6%. Consumer and cyclical stocks were the top performers, but oil names were sliding.
Hong Kong stocks also made up early losses. The Hang Seng
HSI, +0.90%
was up 0.3%, on pace for its fourth straight gain. Oil stocks fell though, with PetroChina
0857, -0.82%
and CNOOC
0883, -1.38%
down more than 1%. Property stocks were also under pressure after major lending local banks announced plans to finally raise interest rates — perhaps signalling the end to a decade of low borrowing costs. Hang Lung Properties
0101, -1.59%
and New World Development
0017, -0.18%
were down more 1%.
South Korea’s Kospi
SEU, +0.03%
slipped 0.1%, with Hyundai
005380, -0.78%
down 1%. Stocks were down in Taiwan
Y9999, -0.22%
, but up in Malaysia
FBMKLCI, +0.20%
. Singapore’s market was closed for a holiday.
Australia’s ASX 200
XJO, +0.67%
was up despite energy losses. Santos
STO, -0.30%
, Oil Search
OSH, +0.11%
and Woodside Petroleum
WPL, -0.25%
were all down less than 1%. New Zealand’s NZX 50
NZ50GR, +0.83%
rebounded 0.8% following underperformance the past few days as Ryman Healthcare,
RYM, +2.38%
a retirement-village operator, jumped 4% to fresh record highs.
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Source : MTV
