Panic selling in China appears to be taking a pause.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index hesitated 35.4 points, or 0.2%, to 18,264.22,
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index faded 58.13 points, or 0.3%, to 21,504.37. Stocks in Hong Kong, up 3.2% for the week, had their first positive week since mid-July.
The Nikkei was up 2.7% this week, helped by a 7.7% increase on Wednesday, which had been its biggest daily percentage gain since October 2008. The benchmark had been losing for four straight weeks prior.
The Kospi Composite Index was up 3% this week, while Australia’s S&P ASX 200 finished up 2.6%.
Japan investors are trying to gauge the government’s appetite for more easing. The Bank of Japan could announce monetary easing at its meeting Monday and Tuesday, before the U.S. Federal Reserve meets, wrote Nomura Securities chief FX strategist Yunosuke Ikeda in a report. Ikeda notes that Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has surprised investors in the past, including an aggressive easing last October.
Japanese stocks are down about 12% from their late-June peak.
The Japanese yen has strengthened during the summer market turmoil, as investors sought the safety of yen assets. After trading as strong as 116.46 against the U.S. dollar in late August, it has weakened slightly to 120.58.
Shares in Hong Kong and Shanghai are off only a fraction so far this month, each having lost roughly 12% in August. Deutsche Bank said in a recent report that it remains upbeat on Hong Kong, saying it expects Chinese stocks listed there (H-shares) to rise about 30% by the end of the year.
South Korea’s Kospi was down Friday, after the Bank of Korea kept interest rates unchanged, as expected, for the third straight month.
The country has faced growing pressure for more easing, as sluggish global demand weighs on Korean exports. China’s slowdown and recent market turmoil have added to its woes, at a time when Korean domestic demand has also been fragile.
Australia’s market hasn’t suffered losses as steep as Japan’s or China’s in recent weeks. But Goldman Sachs on Friday cut Australia’s GDP-growth forecast for 2016 to 2% from 2.25%, and warned that the risk of a recession remains elevated. It added that the Reserve Bank of Australia might need to lower its benchmark interest rate — already at a record-low 2% — twice more.
CHINA
The CSI 300 in Shanghai dropped 10.37 points, or 0.3%, to 3,347.19
Chinese authorities have made fresh attempts in recent days to stabilize their markets, down 38% since June, with a mix of fiscal stimulus and high-level assurances. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told the World Economic Forum in the northeast city of Dalian Thursday that his country’s economy isn’t heading for a hard landing, recent volatility won’t affect its economic trajectory and reforms are on track.
Worries about China’s slowing economy and its leaders’ ability to shore up markets after a summer selloff have doused investor enthusiasm. But, now, it appears, a rebound is shaping up in the region.
In other markets
Markets in Singapore were closed Friday for holiday
In Korea, the Kospi index lost 20.74 points, or 1.1%, to 1,941.37
In Taiwan, the Taiex index recovered 37.14 points, or 0.5%, to 8,305.82
The NZX 50 moved back 22.77 points, or 0.4%, to 5,648.22
The ASX 200 Index slipped 23.93 points, or 0.5%, to 5,071.09
