Headline shares of the Asia Pacific market ended mixed after erasing
early losses to on Wednesday, 28 January 2015, as investors eyeing on
meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve later in the global day.
Shares in regional market opened the day lower as fall in U.S. stocks overnight kept investors cautious. The Wall Street tumbled on Tuesday amid concern about weak corporate earnings and ahead of outcome of the 2 day FOMC meeting on Wednesday. The Dow dropped 1.7% to close at 17,387.21. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 1.3% to 2,029.56. The NASDAQ composite dropped 1.9% to 4,681.50.
Market participants seemed reluctant to make any significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later in the global day. The US Federal Reserve's interest-rate setting committee was set to first policy meet of 2015 overnight after winding down its massive monetary stimulus and markets were expected to be watching for any indication on the timing of a possible rate hike.
Among Asian bourses
Australia market etches out a small gain
The Australian share market etched out a small gain after recouping early losses, registering fifth day of consecutive rise. Among sectors, gains among the big four banks, consumer discretionary, energy, and telecom companies were more than offset a slide in the realty and consumer staple sectors. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index and the broader All Ordinaries Index both rose by 0.1% to 5552.80 and 5516.60, respectively, a strongest close since mid-September 2014.
Financial stocks closed higher, with top four lender leading rally. Westpac Banking Corp advanced 0.4% to A$34.68, ANZ Banking Group 0.2% to A$32.64, National Australia Bank 0.1% to A$35.20 and Commonwealth Bank of Australia 0.1% to A$87.70.
Shares of materials and resources companies closed mixed, after iron ore dipped for the fifth straight session on Tuesday, following a 4.3% plunge on Monday. Iron ore is now fetching $63.50 per tonne, its lowest point since May 2009. Among the major miners, BHP Billiton was roughly flat at A$28.94, Rio Tinto ended 0.3% higher at A$56.98, but Fortescue Metals slipped 1.9% to A$2.04.
Mount Gibson shares finished flat at A$0.23 after the company confirmed a A$950 million of write-downs in the first half of the 2015 financial year as the troubled iron ore miner struggles with the price plunge in the steel-making ingredient.
Oz Minerals jumped 4.9% to A$3.61 following a new partnership with the South Australian government which will see the miner move from Melbourne to Adelaide.
Bradken shares plunged 35.8% to A$2.64 after takeover talks with private equity players Pacific Equity Partners and Bain Capital Asia ended.
On the macro front- The Australian Bureau of Statistics said today that Australian consumer prices rose by 0.2% in the fourth quarter from the third and by 1.7% from a year earlier. The Reserve Bank of Australia targets an annualized inflation rate of between 2% and 3%.Core inflation, which attempts to strip out extraordinary events such as extreme weather or new taxes, rose by an average 0.7% in the quarter.
Nikkei extends gain to fresh 1-month high
Japanese share market reversed losses to hit a new one-month high for the second straight session, boosted by a weaker yen and expectations for good earnings results. The benchmark Nikkei Stock Average advanced 0.15% to close at 17795.73, while the broader Topix gained 0.25% to close at 1429.92.
Exporters rallied as the yen weakened against the greenback, breaching the 118 handle. Sharp Corp surged over 4.4% to 236 yen while Panasonic Corp jumped 2% to 1400 yen. Sony Corp rallied 2.7% to 2824 yen on reports it is cutting a thousand jobs at its loss-making smartphone business.
Shares of civil aviation and utilities companies that benefiting from cheaper oil advanced the most, as Crude fell as Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest exporter, signalled it won't balance the market and forecasts for rising U.S. oil inventories bolstered speculation that a global glut will persist. ANA gained 3.3% to 325.1 yen. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the third-biggest shipper by market value, jumped 4.4% to 354 yen. Chugoku Electric Power surged 6.6% to 1614 yen.
Shanghai Composite ends 1.4% lower
Mainland China share market closed at a one-week low, extending losses into a second session as profit booking continued amid concerns about economic weakness fuelled by sharp fall in the profit growth at Chinese industrial sector in December. Meanwhile selloff pressure mounted on concern inflows into equities will slow after some banks reduced leverage for trust products investing in shares. Among sectors, selloff pressure witness across the SSE sectors, with Financials and property counters being the biggest percentage losers. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slid 1.4%, or 47.41 points, to close at 3305.55.
China's factory profits grew at their weakest rate in two years in 2014 as its economic growth slipped to a 24-year low, underscoring the challenges the economy faces. Profits for large Chinese industrial companies' rose 3.3% last year from 2013, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed yesterday, the slowest rate of growth seen since November 2012. In December alone, factory profits shrank 8%, the worst performance seen in at least a year.
Shares of financial and energy companies declined the most in Beijing on concerns about economic growth. Banks are also feeling the effects of the slowdown, with the bad debt ratio of Chinese banks climbing to a five-year high of 1.6% at the end of 2014, China's bank regulator said last week. Citic Securities Co, China's biggest listed brokerage, fell 2.9% and Haitong Securities Co. retreated 0.9%. China Life, the nation's biggest insurer, fell 4.3%, while ICBC, the largest lender, lost 1.9%. China Minsheng Banking Corp. declined 2.5%. PetroChina, the nation's biggest oil company, fell 3.7%. China Shenhua Energy Co., the country's largest coal producer, lost 2.4%.
Shaanxi Coal Industry Co. plunged 6.3% after the Shanghai Securities News said the northern province of Shanxi won't approve any new coal mines before 2020, except to replace existing capacity.
Realty issue ended down, with Poly Real Estate Group Co. slumping 3.6% to pace a retreat for developers after China's banking regulator in Shanghai asked local lenders to conduct the widest-ever tests on their exposure to the struggling real-estate industry. Gemdale Corp. declined 1.2%.
Hang Seng ends 0.22% up
Hong Kong share market closed slight higher after recouping losses, as telecommunications counters climbed. But the mood was cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy decision. The benchmark index opened 7.30 points down as fall in U.S. stocks overnight kept investors cautious. The benchmark fell as much as 90.60 points at one stage, before recouping all lost ground in tandem with the reversal of Asian markets. The Hang Seng Index ended higher 54.53 points or 0.22% to 24861.81, off an intra-day high of 24983.89 and day low of 24716.68. Turnover reduced to HK$80.37 billion from HK$94 billion on Tuesday.
Shares of telecommunications advanced the most in Hong Kong market, with industry heavyweight China Mobile rising 0.7% to HK$103.40. Tencent (00700) edged up 0.7% to HK$136.9.
Shares of HK listed Mainland Chinese banks mostly retreated, with China Citic Bank Corp off 0.2% to HK$5.83, after it posted a 3.8% year-on-year increase in net profit for 2014. Bank of Communications Co declined 2.2% to HK$6.62 and China Merchants Bank Co lost 1.6% to HK$17.66. However, brokerage firm Citic Securities Co jumped 2% to HK$25.45, after its earnings more than doubled last year.
Macau gaming counters declined on profit taking after yesterday's rally. Melco Dev (00200) slipped 3.4% to HK$15.46. Galaxy Ent (00027) and Sands China (01928) softened 1% and 1.3% to HK$43.2 and HK$39.65. But Wynn Macau (01128) put on 3.2% to HK$22.6.
Sensex sheds after hitting record high
Indian equity shares were trading lower late afternoon after hitting a record high early today. Investors succumbed to profit-taking as blue-chips on hopes that the Federal Reserve could take a dovish stance in its post-meeting statement later in the day. At 14:55 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.4% at 29451, while The CNX Nifty was down 0.04% at 8906.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought Indian shares worth a net Rs 953.50 crore yesterday, 27 January 2015, as per provisional data.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region: Taiwan's Taiex index fell 0.11% to 9510.92. South Korea KOSPI rose 0.47% to 1961.58. New Zealand's NZX50 jumped 0.99% at 5794.82. Singapore's Straits Times index was a tad lower at 3412.4 as Singapore's central bank unexpectedly eased monetary policy ahead of its scheduled review in April. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index was down 0.19% to 5266.97. Malaysia's KLCI fell 0.4% to 1795.88.
Shares in regional market opened the day lower as fall in U.S. stocks overnight kept investors cautious. The Wall Street tumbled on Tuesday amid concern about weak corporate earnings and ahead of outcome of the 2 day FOMC meeting on Wednesday. The Dow dropped 1.7% to close at 17,387.21. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 1.3% to 2,029.56. The NASDAQ composite dropped 1.9% to 4,681.50.
Market participants seemed reluctant to make any significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later in the global day. The US Federal Reserve's interest-rate setting committee was set to first policy meet of 2015 overnight after winding down its massive monetary stimulus and markets were expected to be watching for any indication on the timing of a possible rate hike.
Among Asian bourses
Australia market etches out a small gain
The Australian share market etched out a small gain after recouping early losses, registering fifth day of consecutive rise. Among sectors, gains among the big four banks, consumer discretionary, energy, and telecom companies were more than offset a slide in the realty and consumer staple sectors. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index and the broader All Ordinaries Index both rose by 0.1% to 5552.80 and 5516.60, respectively, a strongest close since mid-September 2014.
Financial stocks closed higher, with top four lender leading rally. Westpac Banking Corp advanced 0.4% to A$34.68, ANZ Banking Group 0.2% to A$32.64, National Australia Bank 0.1% to A$35.20 and Commonwealth Bank of Australia 0.1% to A$87.70.
Shares of materials and resources companies closed mixed, after iron ore dipped for the fifth straight session on Tuesday, following a 4.3% plunge on Monday. Iron ore is now fetching $63.50 per tonne, its lowest point since May 2009. Among the major miners, BHP Billiton was roughly flat at A$28.94, Rio Tinto ended 0.3% higher at A$56.98, but Fortescue Metals slipped 1.9% to A$2.04.
Mount Gibson shares finished flat at A$0.23 after the company confirmed a A$950 million of write-downs in the first half of the 2015 financial year as the troubled iron ore miner struggles with the price plunge in the steel-making ingredient.
Oz Minerals jumped 4.9% to A$3.61 following a new partnership with the South Australian government which will see the miner move from Melbourne to Adelaide.
Bradken shares plunged 35.8% to A$2.64 after takeover talks with private equity players Pacific Equity Partners and Bain Capital Asia ended.
On the macro front- The Australian Bureau of Statistics said today that Australian consumer prices rose by 0.2% in the fourth quarter from the third and by 1.7% from a year earlier. The Reserve Bank of Australia targets an annualized inflation rate of between 2% and 3%.Core inflation, which attempts to strip out extraordinary events such as extreme weather or new taxes, rose by an average 0.7% in the quarter.
Nikkei extends gain to fresh 1-month high
Japanese share market reversed losses to hit a new one-month high for the second straight session, boosted by a weaker yen and expectations for good earnings results. The benchmark Nikkei Stock Average advanced 0.15% to close at 17795.73, while the broader Topix gained 0.25% to close at 1429.92.
Exporters rallied as the yen weakened against the greenback, breaching the 118 handle. Sharp Corp surged over 4.4% to 236 yen while Panasonic Corp jumped 2% to 1400 yen. Sony Corp rallied 2.7% to 2824 yen on reports it is cutting a thousand jobs at its loss-making smartphone business.
Shares of civil aviation and utilities companies that benefiting from cheaper oil advanced the most, as Crude fell as Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest exporter, signalled it won't balance the market and forecasts for rising U.S. oil inventories bolstered speculation that a global glut will persist. ANA gained 3.3% to 325.1 yen. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the third-biggest shipper by market value, jumped 4.4% to 354 yen. Chugoku Electric Power surged 6.6% to 1614 yen.
Shanghai Composite ends 1.4% lower
Mainland China share market closed at a one-week low, extending losses into a second session as profit booking continued amid concerns about economic weakness fuelled by sharp fall in the profit growth at Chinese industrial sector in December. Meanwhile selloff pressure mounted on concern inflows into equities will slow after some banks reduced leverage for trust products investing in shares. Among sectors, selloff pressure witness across the SSE sectors, with Financials and property counters being the biggest percentage losers. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slid 1.4%, or 47.41 points, to close at 3305.55.
China's factory profits grew at their weakest rate in two years in 2014 as its economic growth slipped to a 24-year low, underscoring the challenges the economy faces. Profits for large Chinese industrial companies' rose 3.3% last year from 2013, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed yesterday, the slowest rate of growth seen since November 2012. In December alone, factory profits shrank 8%, the worst performance seen in at least a year.
Shares of financial and energy companies declined the most in Beijing on concerns about economic growth. Banks are also feeling the effects of the slowdown, with the bad debt ratio of Chinese banks climbing to a five-year high of 1.6% at the end of 2014, China's bank regulator said last week. Citic Securities Co, China's biggest listed brokerage, fell 2.9% and Haitong Securities Co. retreated 0.9%. China Life, the nation's biggest insurer, fell 4.3%, while ICBC, the largest lender, lost 1.9%. China Minsheng Banking Corp. declined 2.5%. PetroChina, the nation's biggest oil company, fell 3.7%. China Shenhua Energy Co., the country's largest coal producer, lost 2.4%.
Shaanxi Coal Industry Co. plunged 6.3% after the Shanghai Securities News said the northern province of Shanxi won't approve any new coal mines before 2020, except to replace existing capacity.
Realty issue ended down, with Poly Real Estate Group Co. slumping 3.6% to pace a retreat for developers after China's banking regulator in Shanghai asked local lenders to conduct the widest-ever tests on their exposure to the struggling real-estate industry. Gemdale Corp. declined 1.2%.
Hang Seng ends 0.22% up
Hong Kong share market closed slight higher after recouping losses, as telecommunications counters climbed. But the mood was cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy decision. The benchmark index opened 7.30 points down as fall in U.S. stocks overnight kept investors cautious. The benchmark fell as much as 90.60 points at one stage, before recouping all lost ground in tandem with the reversal of Asian markets. The Hang Seng Index ended higher 54.53 points or 0.22% to 24861.81, off an intra-day high of 24983.89 and day low of 24716.68. Turnover reduced to HK$80.37 billion from HK$94 billion on Tuesday.
Shares of telecommunications advanced the most in Hong Kong market, with industry heavyweight China Mobile rising 0.7% to HK$103.40. Tencent (00700) edged up 0.7% to HK$136.9.
Shares of HK listed Mainland Chinese banks mostly retreated, with China Citic Bank Corp off 0.2% to HK$5.83, after it posted a 3.8% year-on-year increase in net profit for 2014. Bank of Communications Co declined 2.2% to HK$6.62 and China Merchants Bank Co lost 1.6% to HK$17.66. However, brokerage firm Citic Securities Co jumped 2% to HK$25.45, after its earnings more than doubled last year.
Macau gaming counters declined on profit taking after yesterday's rally. Melco Dev (00200) slipped 3.4% to HK$15.46. Galaxy Ent (00027) and Sands China (01928) softened 1% and 1.3% to HK$43.2 and HK$39.65. But Wynn Macau (01128) put on 3.2% to HK$22.6.
Sensex sheds after hitting record high
Indian equity shares were trading lower late afternoon after hitting a record high early today. Investors succumbed to profit-taking as blue-chips on hopes that the Federal Reserve could take a dovish stance in its post-meeting statement later in the day. At 14:55 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.4% at 29451, while The CNX Nifty was down 0.04% at 8906.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought Indian shares worth a net Rs 953.50 crore yesterday, 27 January 2015, as per provisional data.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region: Taiwan's Taiex index fell 0.11% to 9510.92. South Korea KOSPI rose 0.47% to 1961.58. New Zealand's NZX50 jumped 0.99% at 5794.82. Singapore's Straits Times index was a tad lower at 3412.4 as Singapore's central bank unexpectedly eased monetary policy ahead of its scheduled review in April. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index was down 0.19% to 5266.97. Malaysia's KLCI fell 0.4% to 1795.88.
