Investors locked in profits on their Asian investments Thursday, with Hong Kong stocks continuing to slide from near-record levels as a local newspaper reported Beijing is set to ban state-owned companies from launching simultaneous initial public offerings in Hong Kong and mainland stock exchanges.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended 0.6 percent lower at 17,092.49, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.4 percent to 1,657.80, after rising as high as 1,667.48 earlier in the session.
The Hang Seng Index declined 1.8 percent to end at 26,973.98, adding to Wednesday's 2.6 percent drop. The 43-issue Hang Seng China Enterprises index was hit harder, losing 3.4% at 16,727.05, a day after it tumbled 3.7 percent.
Shares worth HK$147.5 billion ($19 billion) changed hands in Hong Kong Thursday. That compared with a record $209.81 billion turnover recorded Wednesday, and ranks among the five mostly heavily traded sessions in the bourse's history.
In Hone Kong, shares of oil and gas producer Cnooc sank 6.4 percent, and Aluminum Corp. of China stock dropped 3.9 percent, while Posco stock slumped 8.4 percent in Seoul.
In Tokyo, shares of Sony Corp. fell 1.7 percent and Advantest Corp. stock gave up 0.8 percent, tracking an overnight decline in U.S. technology stocks.
In IPO-related news, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post newspaper reported that the Chinese government is set to ban state-owned companies from launching simultaneous initial public offerings in Hong Kong and mainland stock exchanges. The newspaper did not cite sources for its information.
ELSEWHERE:
SEOUL: South Korea's Kospi fell 0.5 percent to 2,003.60, as trading resumed after a holiday.
MUMBAI: India's 30-issue Sensex fell 1.1 percent to 17,648.91 in late afternoon trading, led by index heavyweight Oil & Natural Gas Corp., whose shares were trading 4.3 percent lower, in line with a correction in global crude oil prices.
SINGAPORE: The Straits Times index added 0.8 percent at 3,783.81.
TAIPEI: Taiwan's Weighted index declined 0.8 percent to 9,627.39.
SYDNEY: Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.4 percent at 6,566.90
WELLINGTON: New Zealand's NZX 50 index dropped 0.6 percent to 4,299.98.
with files from other wire services
