Asian markets fell Thursday on continued fears that the U.S. Federal Reserve could soon start cutting its bond-buying program, though Hong Kong’s largest listing in 2013 started trading with a pop.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index doffed 173.24 points, or 1.1%, to 15,341.82
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index docked 120.12 points, or 0.5%, to 23,218.12
China Cinda Asset Management, Hong Kong’s largest initial public offering this year, surged 27.5% on its debut. The financial firm, which processes Chinese bad debt from Chinese banks and converts it into equity stakes, raised $2.5 billion U.S. in an IPO that priced at the top of its price range.
A number of other companies started trading in Hong Kong. Among them was Qinhuangdao Port Co., which raised $561 million U.S. after pricing its IPO at the low end of its range. Shares in China’s largest coal-port operator by capacity dropped 6.3% on its first day.
The U.S. dollar lost 0.4% against the yen overnight, though it made a recovery on Thursday, trading at ¥102.79, compared with ¥102.45 late Wednesday in New York.
Earlier this week, the dollar was close to reaching a fresh multi-year high against its Japanese counterpart.
The weaker yen was a catalyst for strong gains in Japanese stocks in November. Although the dollar recovered on Thursday, the Nikkei was more focused on the overnight declines on Wall Street.
Stock trading in Sydney remained depressed, after Australia’s unemployment rate rose in November to 5.8%, moving closer to a post-financial crisis high.
The market has been weighed by a flood of IPOs hitting the market before Christmas, as well as a surprise profit warning earlier in the week from QBE Insurance Group Ltd. that hit broader market sentiment. The insurer lost another 5.5% on Thursday, bringing its total weekly loss to 32.7%.
CHINA
Shanghai’s CSI 300 index dipped 2.75 points, or 0.1%, to 2,410.01
Chinese pharmaceutical retailer Jintian Pharmaceutical Group Ltd., which raised $189 million U.S. in an IPO after pricing its deal at the low end of the price range, plunged 18.6% on its first day of trading.
In other markets;
Korea’s Kospi Index eased 10.04 points, or 0.5%, to 1,967.93
Taiwan’s Taiex Index lost 72.44 points, or 0.9%, to 8,361.33
The Singapore Straits Times Index eased 1.70 points, or 0.1%, to 3,059.04
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 gained 3.90 points, or 0.1%, to 4,708.20
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 41.73 points, or 0.8%, to 5,062.52
