Asian markets ended mixed Tuesday in a volatile session marked by thin trading volumes as investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates.
The benchmark Nikkei Stock 225 stock average lost 96.6 points or 1.1% to close at 8,568.0 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed up 0.6% at 15,130.
On the economic front, an index measuring activity in Japan's service industry unexpectedly rose by 0.4% in October from the previous month, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a report. That was significantly higher than analyst expectations that had called for a decline of 0.2% on month following a revised 0.7% monthly decline in September.
Shares of companies with exposure to the Madoff's fund were weak. Top brokerage Nomura Holdings shed 4.3% and Aozora Bank plunged over 5%.
Among exporters, Honda dropped 5.4%, Canon lost 1.6%, Hitachi fell 4.2%, and Sony lost 5.9% after Credit Suisse downgraded its rating on the stock to 'Underperform' from 'Neutral' and alos lowered the target price. Banks fell, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group losing 1.7%, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group plummeting 3.7% and Mizuho Financial Group tumbling 3.9%.
Steelmakers lost ground after the Nikkei business daily said that Toyota Motor plans to ask for a cut in steel prices of about 30% amid slower demand. Nippon Steel declined 4.4%, JFE Holdings sank 5.9%, and Sumitomo Metal Industries declined 1.8%.
CHINA
The Chinese stock market extended its gains on Tuesday after central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan suggested that another interest rate cut was likely. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index opened lower, but rebounded to end up 10.6 points or 0.5% at 1,975.0 and the smaller Shenzhen Composite Index gained 1.9% to 601.7.
On the economic front, data released today showed that China's domestic investment in assets grew by 26.8% year-over-year in the first 11 months of the year compared to 27.2% in January-October.
Property developers rose on expectations that a rate cut might spur more sales. China Vanke surged up 5.3% and Poly Real Estate Group soared 7.3%. Automakers also posted gains, with Dongfeng Automobile rising 2.3% and Hunan Changfeng Motors adding 1.9%. Among pharmaceuticals, Huadong Medicine climbed 8.8% and Shandong Xinhua Pharmaceutical advanced 3.2%.
Elsewhere:
Taiwan's Taiex ended flat at 4,616.
Singapore's STI closed up 0.4% at 1,782.
Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index shed 1.2% to 1,342.
Malaysia's KLCI closed up 8.3 points at 854.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index slid 1% to 3,556.20.
South Korea's Kospi gained 0.3% to 1,161.56.
New Zealand's NZX 50 rose 0.7% to 2,695.08.
with files from other wire services
