Japanese stocks ended the day slightly higher in a choppy session on Wednesday after the Bank of Japan stood pat on policy, while Hong Kong stocks saw a sharp loss.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index returned from holiday to forge ahead 15.88 points, or 0.1%, to 14,304.11. The benchmark recovered slightly from Monday, when it fell 1% after disappointing earnings from Honda Motor Co. Ltd. and in light of a stronger yen.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 319.92 points, or 1.4%, to 22,133.97.
Shares in Tokyo lost much of their gains as the yen strengthened before the Bank of Japan finished its policy meeting. The central bank kept its policy steady, as expected. Focus now shifts to the bank’s semiannual forecast on growth and prices to be released later in the day. The U.S. Federal Reserve also will release its policy statement later Wednesday.
The U.S. dollar was last at ¥102.47, down from ¥102.64 late Tuesday in New York.
Australian markets edged up, as the market failed to recover from a sharp fall on Tuesday after hitting a multi-year high. A series of bank downgrades triggered steep falls that continued into Wednesday, with National Australia Bank Ltd. down 0.6% and Bank of Queensland down 1.1%.
Australian retailers fell after Wesfarmers Ltd. on Tuesday said its sales growth slowed. The company dropped another 0.7% Wednesday, while Woolworths Ltd. lost 1.9% despite reporting solid third quarter sales growth of 5.3% from a year earlier.
Sentiment in Hong Kong cooled on news that WH Group scrapped its initial public offering because of weak demand. The Chinese pork producer’s IPO could have raised as much as $1.9 billion U.S. The company cited deteriorating market conditions and volatility for its decision.
Hong Kong remained bumpy on Wednesday, as the market gave up most of its Tuesday gains.
Investors fled growth stocks, with Tencent Holdings Ltd. falling 5.2% to the lowest close this year of 483.20 Hong Kong dollars, in favour of defensive sectors such as telecoms. The shift comes before the Fed meeting and the release of Chinese purchasers manufacturing index data due tomorrow.
In other markets;
The Shanghai CSI 300 inched up 0.19 points to 2,158.66
Taiwan’s Taiex Index sagged 80.67 points, or 0.9%, to 8,791.44
Singapore’s Straits Times Index gained 26.97 points, or 0.8%, to 3,264.71
Korea’s Kospi Index faded 2.98points, or 0.2%, to 1,961.79
New Zealand NZX 50 index added 84.39 points, or 1.6%, to 5,232.68
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 regained 2.50 points to 5,489.07
