Headline shares of the Asia Pacific market mostly advanced on Wednesday,
16 July 2014, lifted by report showing China's economy expanded at a
better-than-expected pace in the quarter ended June 2014.
China's economic growth increased for the first time in three quarters after the government accelerated spending and freed up more money for loans to counter a property slump. The National Bureau of Statistics announced on Wednesday that China's gross domestic product grew 7.5% in the April-June period, picking up from the 7.4% growth in the first quarter.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in March during annual meeting of parliament that China has set its gross domestic product (GDP) growth target for 2014 at 7.5%, the same as for 2013, and will keep consumer inflation at 3.5%.
Meanwhile, other Chinese data showed industrial production rose 9.2% in June from a year earlier. Retail sales increased 12.4% from a year earlier. Fixed-asset investment excluding rural households increased 17.3% year on year in the first six months of 2014.
However, the move on the upside limited across the regional bourses, following Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday. Yellen expressed concerns about stretched valuations in equity markets, including the social media and biotech sector, which saw U.S. markets finish mostly lower overnight.
Yellen reiterated that the U.S. labour market was far from healthy and signalled the Fed would keep monetary policy loose until hiring and wage data show the effects of the financial crisis are "completely gone".
Among Asian bourses
Australia market ends higher
Australian share market finished slight higher, as gain in materials stocks were more than offset by weakness banking stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 7.60 points, or 0.14% to 5518.90, while the broader All Ordinaries Index added 8.80 points, or 0.16%, to 5504.50.
Sydney shares started Wednesday's trade in positive territory. But after 30 minutes the market had lost momentum and traded in the red. The local shares recouped lost ground late afternoon after release of the Chinese economic numbers for the June.
Material and resources stocks advanced, buoyed by quarterly production numbers from Rio Tinto (RIO), Fortescue (FMG) and Iluka Resources (ILU). The sector was also lifted by positive news from China, which reported 7.5 per cent annual GDP growth in the June quarter, slightly ahead of consensus forecasts. Resources giant BHP Billiton rose 0.6% to A$38.25.
Rio Tinto added 1.3% to A$63.94 after the miner June quarter production numbers report showed iron ore hit record levels and the firm lifted its copper guidance after mining to 164.800/tonne of copper up 4% over last quarter. Rio posted strong results from its Pilbara iron ore production at 105.7M/tonnes up 11% over the last year also up 11% over the last quarter.
Junior iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group surged 6.3% to A$4.58 after it told investors it could produce as much as 160 million tonnes in the new financial year, suggesting the capacity of its export system is not limited to 155 million tonnes as previously thought.
Iluka Resources Limited (ILU) released its Q214 production report today. Iluka's first half production of Zircon/Rutile/Synthetic (Z/R/SR) was 252.000t up 5.9% over the last year, ILU share price up 3.5%.
Sirius Resources surged 14.8 per cent to close at A$3.95, after reporting another promising discovery near the Fraser Range area of Western Australia.
Financial stocks extended losses, with top four lenders leading drop, as investor sentiment continued to be affected by Tuesday's paper by the former Commonwealth Bank of Australia boss David Murray, in which he called for higher capital ratios and more competition between the banks, and criticised superannuation fund fees. Among lenders, Commonwealth Bank declined 0.2% to A$81.35, Westpac fell 0.5% to A$33.89, ANZ Banking Corp sank 0.2% to A$33.15, and National Australia Bank fell 0.1% to A$33.98.
Nikkei closes slightly lower
Japan share market closed down after moving in narrow range, halting a two-day rally, following mixed night in the US after the Fed's warning over stretched valuations in some equity sectors. The Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.10%, or 15.86 points, to finish at 15,379.30, while the Topix index of all first-section shares was flat, slipping 0.01%, or 0.09 points, to 1,273.59.
Shares of Japanese chip-related shares climbed up after the strong earnings and outlook from semiconductor maker Intel, with Ibiden gaining 1.0%, Canon adding 0.6%, and wafer-maker Sumco rising 3.3%. Intel said it shipped a record number of microprocessors in the second quarter, posting a 40% profit jump.
Shares of social networking companies declined, with DeNA erasing 1.2% and Gree falling 1.9%, on news reports that smartphone messaging application maker Line Corp. has applied to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
JX Holdings added 0.6% following a Nikkei report that its subsidiary, JX Nippon Oil & Energy, plans to set up 100 hydrogen stations in Japan by the fiscal year beginning 2018 in an effort to develop the infrastructure for fuel cell vehicles. The company already has five hydrogen stations in Tokyo, Yokohama and elsewhere.
Samantha Thavasa jumped 7.1% after the company said quarterly profit jumped 73% to 808 million yen from a year earlier amid a 45% surge in sales.
Aderans Co lost 3.3% after the wigmaker's reported yesterday that its net income for the quarter through May plunged 85% to 236 million yen ($2.3 million) from the previous year.
China stocks fall as liquidity woes dim GDP data.
Mainland China share market declined for the first time in four days, as concerns over the liquidity squeeze amid new share sales overshadowed better than expected domestic GDP and home sales data. The benchmark Shanghai Composite declined 3.08 points, or 0.15%, to 2067.28. Trading turnover decreased to 102.03 billion yuan from yesterday's 102.89 billion yuan.
Concerns about liquidity squeeze renewed after the Securities Daily reported on Wednesday that 12 initial public offerings that recently received regulatory approval may freeze subscription funds of as much as 766.5 billion yuan ($124 billion).
Shares of property developers climbed up after the difference between the National Statistics Bureau's data of home sales for the first half of the year and the first five months indicated value of homes sold stood at 591.2 billion yuan ($95.2 billion) last month, rebounded 33% from 446.1 billion yuan in May. Poly Real Estate, the second-biggest developer, gained 2.7%. China State Construction Engineering Corp. jumped 3.8%.
Shares of technology companies declined on profit taking after the comment from the new chair of the US Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen. Janet referred to “stretched valuations” for smaller stocks in social media and biotechnology sectors. Leshi Internet Information & Technology Co., the biggest company in the ChiNext index, plunged 9.8%. Goertek Inc., a supplier to Apple Inc., dropped 1.4%.
Shares of SDIC Power gained 6.6% and COFCO Tunhe climbed 10% after the Beijing announced it had picked six state-owned companies for trials that would allow more independent business management, freer hiring of top executives or permit mixed ownership structures.
Ping An Bank Co. dropped 1.1% to close at one-month low after saying it plans a sale of preferred shares. The bank will sell as much as 10 billion yuan of yuan-denominated shares to no more than 10 institutional investors including parent Ping An Insurance (Group) Co.
Hong Kong stocks rise after China growth data
Hong Kong share market finished higher, on the back of better than expected China's second-quarter economic growth figures. The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed 63.32 points, or 0.27%, up at 23523.28. Turnover increased to HK$53.46 billion from yesterday's HK$52 billion.
Shares of mainland insurers were the biggest drag in Hong Kong. China Life slid 1.2% to HK$20.70 after the company reported first-half premium income of 196.9 billion yuan ($31.7 billion) compared with 202.6 billion yuan a year earlier. China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co. slid 2.8% to HK$27.35.
Shares of selected state-owned enterprises (SOEs) jumped after the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) announced pilot reforms plan on Tuesday. SASAC had picked six state-owned companies for trials allowing more independent business management. China National Building Material Group Corp. and China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp. will explore mixed-ownership structures and board-led human resources management. State Development & Investment Corp. and Cofco Corp. were selected to test means of improving the efficiency and returns of Investment. China National Building Material rose 3.2% to HK$7.80. Shopping-center operator Cofco Land Holdings gained 5% to HK$2.09.
Coal mining stocks were lower. China Shenhua (01088) slid 1.9% to HK$21.15. Yanzhou Coal (01171) fell 1% to HK$5.82. China Coal (01898) dipped 0.96% to HK$4.14.
Sensex surges
Indian shares closed higher, led by real estate companies and banks. The market sentiment was positive after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing and after the latest data showed a decent growth in merchandise exports in June 2014. The Sensex rose 1.27%, or 321.07 points, to close at 25549.72, while the National Stock Exchange's 50-share barometer CNX Nifty added 1.3%, or 97.75 points to close at 7624.40.
Banking and infrastructure stocks rose after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing. Among private bank stocks, Axis Bank (up 3.98%), IndusInd Bank (up 0.79%), HDFC Bank (up 1.14%), Yes Bank (up 1.94%), and ICICI Bank (up 4.81%) gained. State Bank of India (SBI) gained 2.1%, with the stock extending Tuesday's 4.32% rally triggered by the bank's announcement of reduction in interest rates on bulk and retail term deposit interest rates for select maturities which will bring down the cost of funds for the bank.
Among the infrastructure developers, L&T (up 2.24%), Jaiprakash Associates (up 5.12%), Punj Lloyd (up 4.92%), IVRCL (up 4.9%), GVK Power Infrastructure (up 4.7%), Lanco Infratech (up 4.98%), GMR Infrastructure (up 2.94%) and IRB Infrastructure Developers (up 6.09%) gained.
Realty stocks edged higher after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing, including affordable housing. DLF (up 6.31%), Hubtown (up 2.75%), Indiabulls Real Estate (up 4.32%), Housing Development and Infrastructure (up 3.38%), D B Realty (up 4.52%), Unitech (up 7.01%), Godrej Properties (up 2.91%), Oberoi Realty (up 4.93%) and Parsvnath Developers (up 2.13%) gained.
Metal and mining stocks gained after the latest data showed that China's GDP growth accelerated to 7.5% in Q2 June 2014, from 7.4% in Q1 March 2014. China is the world's largest consumer of copper and aluminium. NMDC (up 1.43%), Hindustan Zinc (up 1.04%), National Aluminium Company (up 1.83%) and Hindustan Copper (up 4.58%) edged higher.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region- Taiwan's Taiex index fell 0.9% to 9484.73. South Korea's KOSPI index rose 0.04% to 2013.48. New Zealand's NZX50 sank 0.02% to 5114.24. Malaysia's KLSE Composite was up 0.1% to 1886.71. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index added 0.85% to 5113.93. Singapore's Straits Times index added 0.4% to 3304.43.
China's economic growth increased for the first time in three quarters after the government accelerated spending and freed up more money for loans to counter a property slump. The National Bureau of Statistics announced on Wednesday that China's gross domestic product grew 7.5% in the April-June period, picking up from the 7.4% growth in the first quarter.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in March during annual meeting of parliament that China has set its gross domestic product (GDP) growth target for 2014 at 7.5%, the same as for 2013, and will keep consumer inflation at 3.5%.
Meanwhile, other Chinese data showed industrial production rose 9.2% in June from a year earlier. Retail sales increased 12.4% from a year earlier. Fixed-asset investment excluding rural households increased 17.3% year on year in the first six months of 2014.
However, the move on the upside limited across the regional bourses, following Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday. Yellen expressed concerns about stretched valuations in equity markets, including the social media and biotech sector, which saw U.S. markets finish mostly lower overnight.
Yellen reiterated that the U.S. labour market was far from healthy and signalled the Fed would keep monetary policy loose until hiring and wage data show the effects of the financial crisis are "completely gone".
Among Asian bourses
Australia market ends higher
Australian share market finished slight higher, as gain in materials stocks were more than offset by weakness banking stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 7.60 points, or 0.14% to 5518.90, while the broader All Ordinaries Index added 8.80 points, or 0.16%, to 5504.50.
Sydney shares started Wednesday's trade in positive territory. But after 30 minutes the market had lost momentum and traded in the red. The local shares recouped lost ground late afternoon after release of the Chinese economic numbers for the June.
Material and resources stocks advanced, buoyed by quarterly production numbers from Rio Tinto (RIO), Fortescue (FMG) and Iluka Resources (ILU). The sector was also lifted by positive news from China, which reported 7.5 per cent annual GDP growth in the June quarter, slightly ahead of consensus forecasts. Resources giant BHP Billiton rose 0.6% to A$38.25.
Rio Tinto added 1.3% to A$63.94 after the miner June quarter production numbers report showed iron ore hit record levels and the firm lifted its copper guidance after mining to 164.800/tonne of copper up 4% over last quarter. Rio posted strong results from its Pilbara iron ore production at 105.7M/tonnes up 11% over the last year also up 11% over the last quarter.
Junior iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group surged 6.3% to A$4.58 after it told investors it could produce as much as 160 million tonnes in the new financial year, suggesting the capacity of its export system is not limited to 155 million tonnes as previously thought.
Iluka Resources Limited (ILU) released its Q214 production report today. Iluka's first half production of Zircon/Rutile/Synthetic (Z/R/SR) was 252.000t up 5.9% over the last year, ILU share price up 3.5%.
Sirius Resources surged 14.8 per cent to close at A$3.95, after reporting another promising discovery near the Fraser Range area of Western Australia.
Financial stocks extended losses, with top four lenders leading drop, as investor sentiment continued to be affected by Tuesday's paper by the former Commonwealth Bank of Australia boss David Murray, in which he called for higher capital ratios and more competition between the banks, and criticised superannuation fund fees. Among lenders, Commonwealth Bank declined 0.2% to A$81.35, Westpac fell 0.5% to A$33.89, ANZ Banking Corp sank 0.2% to A$33.15, and National Australia Bank fell 0.1% to A$33.98.
Nikkei closes slightly lower
Japan share market closed down after moving in narrow range, halting a two-day rally, following mixed night in the US after the Fed's warning over stretched valuations in some equity sectors. The Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.10%, or 15.86 points, to finish at 15,379.30, while the Topix index of all first-section shares was flat, slipping 0.01%, or 0.09 points, to 1,273.59.
Shares of Japanese chip-related shares climbed up after the strong earnings and outlook from semiconductor maker Intel, with Ibiden gaining 1.0%, Canon adding 0.6%, and wafer-maker Sumco rising 3.3%. Intel said it shipped a record number of microprocessors in the second quarter, posting a 40% profit jump.
Shares of social networking companies declined, with DeNA erasing 1.2% and Gree falling 1.9%, on news reports that smartphone messaging application maker Line Corp. has applied to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
JX Holdings added 0.6% following a Nikkei report that its subsidiary, JX Nippon Oil & Energy, plans to set up 100 hydrogen stations in Japan by the fiscal year beginning 2018 in an effort to develop the infrastructure for fuel cell vehicles. The company already has five hydrogen stations in Tokyo, Yokohama and elsewhere.
Samantha Thavasa jumped 7.1% after the company said quarterly profit jumped 73% to 808 million yen from a year earlier amid a 45% surge in sales.
Aderans Co lost 3.3% after the wigmaker's reported yesterday that its net income for the quarter through May plunged 85% to 236 million yen ($2.3 million) from the previous year.
China stocks fall as liquidity woes dim GDP data.
Mainland China share market declined for the first time in four days, as concerns over the liquidity squeeze amid new share sales overshadowed better than expected domestic GDP and home sales data. The benchmark Shanghai Composite declined 3.08 points, or 0.15%, to 2067.28. Trading turnover decreased to 102.03 billion yuan from yesterday's 102.89 billion yuan.
Concerns about liquidity squeeze renewed after the Securities Daily reported on Wednesday that 12 initial public offerings that recently received regulatory approval may freeze subscription funds of as much as 766.5 billion yuan ($124 billion).
Shares of property developers climbed up after the difference between the National Statistics Bureau's data of home sales for the first half of the year and the first five months indicated value of homes sold stood at 591.2 billion yuan ($95.2 billion) last month, rebounded 33% from 446.1 billion yuan in May. Poly Real Estate, the second-biggest developer, gained 2.7%. China State Construction Engineering Corp. jumped 3.8%.
Shares of technology companies declined on profit taking after the comment from the new chair of the US Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen. Janet referred to “stretched valuations” for smaller stocks in social media and biotechnology sectors. Leshi Internet Information & Technology Co., the biggest company in the ChiNext index, plunged 9.8%. Goertek Inc., a supplier to Apple Inc., dropped 1.4%.
Shares of SDIC Power gained 6.6% and COFCO Tunhe climbed 10% after the Beijing announced it had picked six state-owned companies for trials that would allow more independent business management, freer hiring of top executives or permit mixed ownership structures.
Ping An Bank Co. dropped 1.1% to close at one-month low after saying it plans a sale of preferred shares. The bank will sell as much as 10 billion yuan of yuan-denominated shares to no more than 10 institutional investors including parent Ping An Insurance (Group) Co.
Hong Kong stocks rise after China growth data
Hong Kong share market finished higher, on the back of better than expected China's second-quarter economic growth figures. The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed 63.32 points, or 0.27%, up at 23523.28. Turnover increased to HK$53.46 billion from yesterday's HK$52 billion.
Shares of mainland insurers were the biggest drag in Hong Kong. China Life slid 1.2% to HK$20.70 after the company reported first-half premium income of 196.9 billion yuan ($31.7 billion) compared with 202.6 billion yuan a year earlier. China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co. slid 2.8% to HK$27.35.
Shares of selected state-owned enterprises (SOEs) jumped after the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) announced pilot reforms plan on Tuesday. SASAC had picked six state-owned companies for trials allowing more independent business management. China National Building Material Group Corp. and China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp. will explore mixed-ownership structures and board-led human resources management. State Development & Investment Corp. and Cofco Corp. were selected to test means of improving the efficiency and returns of Investment. China National Building Material rose 3.2% to HK$7.80. Shopping-center operator Cofco Land Holdings gained 5% to HK$2.09.
Coal mining stocks were lower. China Shenhua (01088) slid 1.9% to HK$21.15. Yanzhou Coal (01171) fell 1% to HK$5.82. China Coal (01898) dipped 0.96% to HK$4.14.
Sensex surges
Indian shares closed higher, led by real estate companies and banks. The market sentiment was positive after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing and after the latest data showed a decent growth in merchandise exports in June 2014. The Sensex rose 1.27%, or 321.07 points, to close at 25549.72, while the National Stock Exchange's 50-share barometer CNX Nifty added 1.3%, or 97.75 points to close at 7624.40.
Banking and infrastructure stocks rose after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing. Among private bank stocks, Axis Bank (up 3.98%), IndusInd Bank (up 0.79%), HDFC Bank (up 1.14%), Yes Bank (up 1.94%), and ICICI Bank (up 4.81%) gained. State Bank of India (SBI) gained 2.1%, with the stock extending Tuesday's 4.32% rally triggered by the bank's announcement of reduction in interest rates on bulk and retail term deposit interest rates for select maturities which will bring down the cost of funds for the bank.
Among the infrastructure developers, L&T (up 2.24%), Jaiprakash Associates (up 5.12%), Punj Lloyd (up 4.92%), IVRCL (up 4.9%), GVK Power Infrastructure (up 4.7%), Lanco Infratech (up 4.98%), GMR Infrastructure (up 2.94%) and IRB Infrastructure Developers (up 6.09%) gained.
Realty stocks edged higher after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, 15 July 2014, announced incentives to raise long term bonds for infrastructure financing, including affordable housing. DLF (up 6.31%), Hubtown (up 2.75%), Indiabulls Real Estate (up 4.32%), Housing Development and Infrastructure (up 3.38%), D B Realty (up 4.52%), Unitech (up 7.01%), Godrej Properties (up 2.91%), Oberoi Realty (up 4.93%) and Parsvnath Developers (up 2.13%) gained.
Metal and mining stocks gained after the latest data showed that China's GDP growth accelerated to 7.5% in Q2 June 2014, from 7.4% in Q1 March 2014. China is the world's largest consumer of copper and aluminium. NMDC (up 1.43%), Hindustan Zinc (up 1.04%), National Aluminium Company (up 1.83%) and Hindustan Copper (up 4.58%) edged higher.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region- Taiwan's Taiex index fell 0.9% to 9484.73. South Korea's KOSPI index rose 0.04% to 2013.48. New Zealand's NZX50 sank 0.02% to 5114.24. Malaysia's KLSE Composite was up 0.1% to 1886.71. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index added 0.85% to 5113.93. Singapore's Straits Times index added 0.4% to 3304.43.
