22 Aug 2008 | 16:08
Asian Markets Ends Week On A Mixed Note
The
stock markets across the Asian region ended on mixed note, as lingering
credit concerns continued to impact financial stocks. However, energy
stocks were higher on the back of a surge in crude oil prices
overnight.
The U.S. stocks finished yesterday's session on a
mixed note following a surge in oil prices and lingering concerns about
the health of the U.S. financial sector. Nonetheless, a better than
expected report on weekly jobless claims gave some investors a reason
to buy into the markets. On Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average
rose 0.11% to 11,430 and the broader S&P 500 index climbed 0.25% to
1,277, but the Nasdaq composite index fell 0.36% to 2,380.
Oil
prices held steady on Friday in the Asian session after surging
overnight over concerns about potential supply disruptions stemming
from rising tensions between the U.S. and Russia. In late Asian
session, crude for October delivery was up 36 cents at $121.54 a barrel
by 3.38 a.m. ET after the contract jumped $5.62 to settle at $121.18 a
barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Thursday.
In
currencies, the U.S. dollar traded in the mid 108-yen levels in early
Tokyo deals, down from upper 108-yen levels late Thursday. The U.S.
dollar recently bought 108.57 yen, compared with 108.68 yen earlier in
the day.
The Australian dollar closed firmer for the third
straight day, as reports that the American government was considering a
bail out for the two biggest mortgage backers prompted traders to sell
the U.S. currency. The local unit finished the session at
US$0.8786-0.8790, up from Thursday's close of US$0.8745-0.8748.
The
New Zealand dollar eased a little after hitting two-week highs in early
trade. The kiwi finished the session at US$0.7187, down from US$0.7206
in early trade, but higher compared to US$0.7132 late Thursday.
The
South Korean won hit a 44-month low against the U.S. dollar. The local
unit closed at 1,062.5 a dollar, down from Thursday's close of 1,054.9
a dollar. Dollar demand from importers and foreign stock investors rose
despite a reported intervention by the foreign exchange authorities.
The won closed at its weakest level since December 10, 2004 when it
closed at 1,067.70 a dollar.
Coming back in equity market, the
Japanese stock market closed lower for the fourth straight trading
session on Friday. A surge in oil prices overnight, lingering concerns
about the U.S. financial sector and a stronger yen weighed on exporters
and banks. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed down 0.7% at a
four-and-a-half-month low of 12,666.04 and the broader Topix Index shed
0.7% to finish at 1,216.42.
On the economic front, the minutes
of the July 14-15 monetary policy committee meeting released by the
Bank of Japan noted that the U.S. economic slowdown and heightened
instability in equity markets have increased the downside risks to
Japan's economy. The central bank added that due attention should be
paid to the degree of deceleration in overseas growth. A number of
members expressed concerns about the risks of the nation's loose
monetary policy and said that those risks should be monitored closely.
The Bank of Japan has left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at
0.5% for the 20th straight month.
Meanwhile, the Japan Chain
Stores Association said that supermarket sales, adjusted for the number
of stores, increased 0.9% year-over-year in July after recording a 0.9%
decline in June. Sales recovered for the first time in four months. On
an unadjusted basis, sales declined 4.4% from a year ago.
The
Chinese market closed lower Friday, but off day's lows on expectation
that the government will announce market-friendly measures over the
weekend. Power producers and property developers lost ground, while
airlines rebounded amid merger talk. The benchmark Shanghai Composite
Index closed down 1.09% at 2,405.23, off a low of 2,362.09. In
Shenzhen, the All Share index plunged by 1.77% to 676.76.
In
Hong Kong, the Hang Seng China Enterprises tracked Shanghai stocks
dropped down by 2.4% at 10,916.50. The benchmark Hang Seng Index
tumbled by 2.6% to 20,392.06.
The Australian stock market closed
higher, reversing Thursday's losses. Higher commodities prices pushed
resources stocks higher and financials gained ground after a shaky
start. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 1.2% at 4,931.4
after closing down 1.1% on Thursday. The broader All Ordinaries index
climbed 60.6 points or 1.2% to finish at 5,010.2.
The New
Zealand stock market closed lower, giving away the gains that it posted
over the previous two sessions. After a flat opening, the market lost
ground amid a mixed overnight lead from Wall Street and rising oil
prices, but recouped some of the losses in late afternoon trade. The
benchmark NZX 50 index closed down 0.62 % at 3,311.61 and the broader
NZX All Capital Index fell 0.37% to finish at 3,353.75.
The
South Korean stock market closed lower Friday, with the key KOSPI index
falling below the 1,500 mark for the first time in 16 months. A surge
in oil prices dented investor sentiment. However, bargain hunting
helped pare some of the losses in the afternoon session. The benchmark
Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.04% to finish at 1,496.91,
extending its losses for the fifth straight session.
India?s key
benchmark indices recovered some of yesterday?s steep losses. The
market extended gains in late trade to touch intra-day high before
paring gains.
The BSE 30-share Sensex provisionally ended up
139.64 points or 0.98% to 14,383.37. The market had staged a comeback
from early lows as heavyweights rebounded. A rally in crude oil prices
weighed on the sentiment in opening trade.
Sensex opened 90.34
points lower at 14,153.39 and slipped further to a low of 14,136.86 in
early trade. At the day?s low, the Sensex lost 106.87 points. At the
day?s high of 14,428.52 points hit in late trade, the Sensex gained
184.79 points.
The S&P CNX Nifty was up 64.17 points or 0.84% to 4,319.65 as per the provisional figures.
On
the economic front, India's wholesale prices index rose 12.63% in the
year through 9 August 2008, up from the previous week's 12.44% rise,
data released by the government after trading hours on Thursday, 21
August 2008, showed.
Meanwhile, as per reports, nuclear supplier
nations at a meeting in Vienna on Thursday, 21 August 2008, proposed
conditions for lifting a global ban on fuel and technology exports to
India, a step required to implement a US-India nuclear cooperation
deal. A green light from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group is
needed for the deal to proceed to the US Congress for final
ratification.
In Taiwan the unemployment rate in July stood at
4.06 pct, up from 3.95 pct in June and against 4.03 pct in the same
month last year, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and
Statistics (DGBAS) said. In the first seven months of the year,
unemployment averaged 3.89 pct, up from 3.88 pct in the year-earlier
period, it said. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the July unemployment
rate came in at 3.91 pct, up from 3.88 pct both in the previous month
and a year earlier, it added. The Taiwan's weighted index fell by 0.1%
to 6,911.64.
Elsewhere, Singapore?s Straits Times index
increased by 0.36% to 2,723.30 while Malaysia the KLSE Composite Index
went up by 1.32% to 1,085.60. In Indonesia, the Jakarta Composite
increased 1.54% to 2,120.49.
In the other part of the world,
shares in Europe fell in initial trading, adding another day of thin
trading, as oil prices climbed and ongoing worries about
financial-sector health pressured banks. However they showed a quick
recovery thereafter.
In the opening trade, the German DAX 30
index lost 1.3% to 6,236.96, while the French CAC-40 index fell 1.4% to
4,304.61. The U.K. FTSE 100 index closed virtually unchanged at
5,370.20. At 10.22 GMT all this national indices came back in green.
The U.K. FTSE 100 index went up by 1.02% to 5,424.90 despite of news of
slowdown in the economy. The German DAX 30 index gained 0.63% to
6,276.55, while the French CAC-40 index increased by 0.64% to 4,332.19.
On
the economic front, euro zone's current account deficit widened in June
as imports rose and income from overseas investments fell. As per the
figures released by the European Central Bank the current account was
in deficit by EUR8.2 billion, more than the EUR5.5 billion in May.
The
euro-zone deficit in trade in goods narrowed, but the surplus in trade
in services fell, while deficits on income flows and current transfers
widened. On a seasonally adjusted basis, exports rose, but so too did
imports, leaving the euro-zone deficit in trade in goods at EUR2.0
billion, narrower than the EUR2.2 billion in May.
That
indicates that at the end of the second quarter, the euro's strength
hadn't yet made it impossible for euro-zone exporters to compete on
global markets.
Without seasonal adjustment, a net EUR54.2
billion in investments flowed into the euro zone's equity and debt
markets, up from EUR22.2 billion in May, while a net EUR22 billion in
direct investment flowed out of the currency area, up from EUR8.8
billion in May.
In another data release, factory orders in the
euro zone fell at the fastest rate since December 2001 in June, pulled
down by steep drops in orders for transport equipment and textiles.
New
industrial orders in the euro zone fell 7.4% on the year in June, a
sharper drop than in May, when they fell 4.4% on the year. The annual
drop was marked the steepest drop since December 2001, when new orders
fell 10%. Over the month in June, new orders fell 0.3%, after dropping
5.4% in May. That compares with market expectations for a
month-on-month drop of 1.6%.
In U.K's the economy stagnated in
the second quarter as construction fell, the decline in production
accelerated, and growth in the service sector weakened.
According
to the Office for National Statistics the gross domestic product was
flat on the quarter in April-June, marking its weakest performance
since the second quarter of 1992. That also put an end to 63
consecutive quarters of economic expansion. In annual terms, the U.K.
economy grew 1.4%, coming in below economist forecasts of a 1.6%
increase and marking the lowest rate of growth since the fourth quarter
of 1992.
Today?s economic calendar will end with a testimony from Federal Reserve Governor Mr. Ben Bernanke.
Asian Markets Ends Week On A Mixed Note
The
stock markets across the Asian region ended on mixed note, as lingering
credit concerns continued to impact financial stocks. However, energy
stocks were higher on the back of a surge in crude oil prices
overnight.
The U.S. stocks finished yesterday's session on a
mixed note following a surge in oil prices and lingering concerns about
the health of the U.S. financial sector. Nonetheless, a better than
expected report on weekly jobless claims gave some investors a reason
to buy into the markets. On Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average
rose 0.11% to 11,430 and the broader S&P 500 index climbed 0.25% to
1,277, but the Nasdaq composite index fell 0.36% to 2,380.
Oil
prices held steady on Friday in the Asian session after surging
overnight over concerns about potential supply disruptions stemming
from rising tensions between the U.S. and Russia. In late Asian
session, crude for October delivery was up 36 cents at $121.54 a barrel
by 3.38 a.m. ET after the contract jumped $5.62 to settle at $121.18 a
barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Thursday.
In
currencies, the U.S. dollar traded in the mid 108-yen levels in early
Tokyo deals, down from upper 108-yen levels late Thursday. The U.S.
dollar recently bought 108.57 yen, compared with 108.68 yen earlier in
the day.
The Australian dollar closed firmer for the third
straight day, as reports that the American government was considering a
bail out for the two biggest mortgage backers prompted traders to sell
the U.S. currency. The local unit finished the session at
US$0.8786-0.8790, up from Thursday's close of US$0.8745-0.8748.
The
New Zealand dollar eased a little after hitting two-week highs in early
trade. The kiwi finished the session at US$0.7187, down from US$0.7206
in early trade, but higher compared to US$0.7132 late Thursday.
The
South Korean won hit a 44-month low against the U.S. dollar. The local
unit closed at 1,062.5 a dollar, down from Thursday's close of 1,054.9
a dollar. Dollar demand from importers and foreign stock investors rose
despite a reported intervention by the foreign exchange authorities.
The won closed at its weakest level since December 10, 2004 when it
closed at 1,067.70 a dollar.
Coming back in equity market, the
Japanese stock market closed lower for the fourth straight trading
session on Friday. A surge in oil prices overnight, lingering concerns
about the U.S. financial sector and a stronger yen weighed on exporters
and banks. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed down 0.7% at a
four-and-a-half-month low of 12,666.04 and the broader Topix Index shed
0.7% to finish at 1,216.42.
On the economic front, the minutes
of the July 14-15 monetary policy committee meeting released by the
Bank of Japan noted that the U.S. economic slowdown and heightened
instability in equity markets have increased the downside risks to
Japan's economy. The central bank added that due attention should be
paid to the degree of deceleration in overseas growth. A number of
members expressed concerns about the risks of the nation's loose
monetary policy and said that those risks should be monitored closely.
The Bank of Japan has left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at
0.5% for the 20th straight month.
Meanwhile, the Japan Chain
Stores Association said that supermarket sales, adjusted for the number
of stores, increased 0.9% year-over-year in July after recording a 0.9%
decline in June. Sales recovered for the first time in four months. On
an unadjusted basis, sales declined 4.4% from a year ago.
The
Chinese market closed lower Friday, but off day's lows on expectation
that the government will announce market-friendly measures over the
weekend. Power producers and property developers lost ground, while
airlines rebounded amid merger talk. The benchmark Shanghai Composite
Index closed down 1.09% at 2,405.23, off a low of 2,362.09. In
Shenzhen, the All Share index plunged by 1.77% to 676.76.
In
Hong Kong, the Hang Seng China Enterprises tracked Shanghai stocks
dropped down by 2.4% at 10,916.50. The benchmark Hang Seng Index
tumbled by 2.6% to 20,392.06.
The Australian stock market closed
higher, reversing Thursday's losses. Higher commodities prices pushed
resources stocks higher and financials gained ground after a shaky
start. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 1.2% at 4,931.4
after closing down 1.1% on Thursday. The broader All Ordinaries index
climbed 60.6 points or 1.2% to finish at 5,010.2.
The New
Zealand stock market closed lower, giving away the gains that it posted
over the previous two sessions. After a flat opening, the market lost
ground amid a mixed overnight lead from Wall Street and rising oil
prices, but recouped some of the losses in late afternoon trade. The
benchmark NZX 50 index closed down 0.62 % at 3,311.61 and the broader
NZX All Capital Index fell 0.37% to finish at 3,353.75.
The
South Korean stock market closed lower Friday, with the key KOSPI index
falling below the 1,500 mark for the first time in 16 months. A surge
in oil prices dented investor sentiment. However, bargain hunting
helped pare some of the losses in the afternoon session. The benchmark
Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 1.04% to finish at 1,496.91,
extending its losses for the fifth straight session.
India?s key
benchmark indices recovered some of yesterday?s steep losses. The
market extended gains in late trade to touch intra-day high before
paring gains.
The BSE 30-share Sensex provisionally ended up
139.64 points or 0.98% to 14,383.37. The market had staged a comeback
from early lows as heavyweights rebounded. A rally in crude oil prices
weighed on the sentiment in opening trade.
Sensex opened 90.34
points lower at 14,153.39 and slipped further to a low of 14,136.86 in
early trade. At the day?s low, the Sensex lost 106.87 points. At the
day?s high of 14,428.52 points hit in late trade, the Sensex gained
184.79 points.
The S&P CNX Nifty was up 64.17 points or 0.84% to 4,319.65 as per the provisional figures.
On
the economic front, India's wholesale prices index rose 12.63% in the
year through 9 August 2008, up from the previous week's 12.44% rise,
data released by the government after trading hours on Thursday, 21
August 2008, showed.
Meanwhile, as per reports, nuclear supplier
nations at a meeting in Vienna on Thursday, 21 August 2008, proposed
conditions for lifting a global ban on fuel and technology exports to
India, a step required to implement a US-India nuclear cooperation
deal. A green light from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group is
needed for the deal to proceed to the US Congress for final
ratification.
In Taiwan the unemployment rate in July stood at
4.06 pct, up from 3.95 pct in June and against 4.03 pct in the same
month last year, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and
Statistics (DGBAS) said. In the first seven months of the year,
unemployment averaged 3.89 pct, up from 3.88 pct in the year-earlier
period, it said. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the July unemployment
rate came in at 3.91 pct, up from 3.88 pct both in the previous month
and a year earlier, it added. The Taiwan's weighted index fell by 0.1%
to 6,911.64.
Elsewhere, Singapore?s Straits Times index
increased by 0.36% to 2,723.30 while Malaysia the KLSE Composite Index
went up by 1.32% to 1,085.60. In Indonesia, the Jakarta Composite
increased 1.54% to 2,120.49.
In the other part of the world,
shares in Europe fell in initial trading, adding another day of thin
trading, as oil prices climbed and ongoing worries about
financial-sector health pressured banks. However they showed a quick
recovery thereafter.
In the opening trade, the German DAX 30
index lost 1.3% to 6,236.96, while the French CAC-40 index fell 1.4% to
4,304.61. The U.K. FTSE 100 index closed virtually unchanged at
5,370.20. At 10.22 GMT all this national indices came back in green.
The U.K. FTSE 100 index went up by 1.02% to 5,424.90 despite of news of
slowdown in the economy. The German DAX 30 index gained 0.63% to
6,276.55, while the French CAC-40 index increased by 0.64% to 4,332.19.
On
the economic front, euro zone's current account deficit widened in June
as imports rose and income from overseas investments fell. As per the
figures released by the European Central Bank the current account was
in deficit by EUR8.2 billion, more than the EUR5.5 billion in May.
The
euro-zone deficit in trade in goods narrowed, but the surplus in trade
in services fell, while deficits on income flows and current transfers
widened. On a seasonally adjusted basis, exports rose, but so too did
imports, leaving the euro-zone deficit in trade in goods at EUR2.0
billion, narrower than the EUR2.2 billion in May.
That
indicates that at the end of the second quarter, the euro's strength
hadn't yet made it impossible for euro-zone exporters to compete on
global markets.
Without seasonal adjustment, a net EUR54.2
billion in investments flowed into the euro zone's equity and debt
markets, up from EUR22.2 billion in May, while a net EUR22 billion in
direct investment flowed out of the currency area, up from EUR8.8
billion in May.
In another data release, factory orders in the
euro zone fell at the fastest rate since December 2001 in June, pulled
down by steep drops in orders for transport equipment and textiles.
New
industrial orders in the euro zone fell 7.4% on the year in June, a
sharper drop than in May, when they fell 4.4% on the year. The annual
drop was marked the steepest drop since December 2001, when new orders
fell 10%. Over the month in June, new orders fell 0.3%, after dropping
5.4% in May. That compares with market expectations for a
month-on-month drop of 1.6%.
In U.K's the economy stagnated in
the second quarter as construction fell, the decline in production
accelerated, and growth in the service sector weakened.
According
to the Office for National Statistics the gross domestic product was
flat on the quarter in April-June, marking its weakest performance
since the second quarter of 1992. That also put an end to 63
consecutive quarters of economic expansion. In annual terms, the U.K.
economy grew 1.4%, coming in below economist forecasts of a 1.6%
increase and marking the lowest rate of growth since the fourth quarter
of 1992.
Today?s economic calendar will end with a testimony from Federal Reserve Governor Mr. Ben Bernanke.
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