Japanese stocks fell for the first time in three days Thursday on data showing the nation’s economy contracted sharply in the quarter to March 31, while South Korean shares were hit by a sixth straight day of selling by foreigners.
But Australian and Hong Kong shares were in an opposite camp, rallying on the back of gains on Wall Street and a bounce in commodity prices overnight.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 average dipped 41.26 points, or 0.4%, to 9,620.82
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 152.24 points, or 0.7%, to 23,011.10.
Stock losses in Tokyo came after data showed the March 11 disasters resulted in a 0.9% contraction in the January-March period from the preceding three months, or a 3.7% annualized decline. The fall marked the second consecutive quarter of contraction, taking Japan into what economists call a "technical recession."
Shares of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. fell 2.1%, Advantest Corp. dropped 3.4% and JFE Holdings Inc. lost 1.6%.
Shares of some Japanese utilities resumed their fall after rising on Wednesday. The drop came after Prime Minister Naoto Kan Wednesday raised the possibility of splitting up electricity generation and distribution businesses. Tokyo Electric Power Co., which will release its fiscal year results Friday, tumbled 8%, Tohoku Electric Power Co. dropped 3.2% and Chubu Electric Power Co. gave up 5.1%.
Several resource sector stocks gained after commodities prices rose in the U.S. In Sydney, BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Ltd. added 1.2% and 1.3%, respectively, while in Hong Kong, Cnooc Ltd. climbed 1.5% and Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. added 1.6%. PetroChina Co. added 0.6% in Hong Kong and 0.2% in a downbeat Shanghai market.
Sentiment in some markets also got a lift from Wall Street’s rise Wednesday and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s minutes showing the central bank will continue to support the economy, and that policymakers were in no hurry to tighten monetary policy.
In Seoul, several stocks were hammered down amid continued foreign selling, with Hyundai Motor Co. shrinking 2.1%, KB Financial Group Inc. losing 2.2% and Hynix Semiconductor Inc. skidding 3.8%.
In foreign exchange markets, the yen weathered the worse-than-expected Japan GDP data, as some traders said the market is more focused on upcoming quarters to gauge the impact of the March natural disasters.
The dollar was fetching 81.92 yen from ¥81.68 late Wednesday in New York. The euro was buying ¥116.48 from ¥116.39, and $1.4220 U.S. from $1.4250 U.S.
In other markets;
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Composite Index slipped 18.74 points, or 0.6%, to 3,120.64
Taiwan’s Taiex Index dropped 51.96 points, or 0.6%, to 8,892.88
Korea’s Kospi index let go of 40.27 points, or 1.9%, to 2,095.51
Singapore’s Straits Times Index added 31.35 points, or 1%, to 3,172.56
New Zealand’s NZX 50 inched higher by 9.44 points, or 0.3%, to 3,569
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 picked up 62.70 points, or 1.3%, to 4,756.40
