Most Asian markets ended higher Thursday as China’s cooling inflation and weak economic data strengthened expectations Beijing will act to support growth.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Index surged 97.44 points, or 1.1%, to 8,978.60
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong rocketed ahead 203.95 points to 20,269.47
Australian markets ended lower, as shares of Telstra Corp. and News Corp. after their earnings reports offset a jump in Rio Tinto Ltd. shares after posting strong half-yearly results.
Commodity-related firms, which depend on consumption for materials in China, gained across most the region.
Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. gained 2.4% and Jiangxi Copper Co. rose 3.7% in Hong Kong; JFE Holdings Inc. climbed 4% and Inpex Corp. added 1.4% in Tokyo, and BHP Billiton Ltd. advanced 1.6% in Sydney.
Also in Sydney, shares of Rio Tinto Ltd. jumped 3.6%, getting an extra boost after announcing first-half results late Wednesday.
But shares of Telstra Corp. fell 2.3% after reporting earnings.
Shares of News Corp. tumbled 3.2%, as the media giant swung to a fiscal fourth-quarter net loss of $1.55 billion U.S. after taking a multi-billion-dollar writedown. The firm reported a profit of $683 million U.S. in the year-ago period.
Earnings also weighed a bit in Japan, as camera maker Nikon Corp. plunged 8.1% after cutting its fiscal-year operating profit guidance late Wednesday, a move that mainly reflected changed foreign-exchange assumptions.
The Japanese central bank Thursday warned of moderation in exports and recently weak production, but kept its interest-rate target and asset-buying programs unchanged.
The Bank of Korea, meanwhile, also left its key policy interest rate unchanged Thursday, after a surprise cut last month — its first in more than three years. However, economists widely expect the bank to introduce fresh policy easing later this year.
CHINA
Data released Thursday showed China’s consumer price inflation rose 1.8% in July, slowing from a 2.2% increase recorded in June, while July wholesale prices contracted at a sharper rate than in the preceding month. Monthly retail sales and industrial production also rose less than expected.
Shanghai’s CSI 300 index gained 21.91 points, or 0.9%, to 2,411.70
In other markets
Markets in Singapore were off for the day
Taiwan’s Taiex Index grew 113.90 points, or 1.6%, to 7,433.70
Korea’s Kospi Index added 37.36 points, or 2%, to 1,940.59
New Zealand’s NZX index eked up 1.82 points to 3,583.61
Australia’s ASX Index shed 4.29 points, or 0.1%, to 4,308.28
