Asian stocks tumbled Thursday as a deterioration in Chinese manufacturing activity and a further spike in Shanghai interbank lending rates applied more selling pressure after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled it may wind down its bond purchases.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 tumbled 230.64 points, or 1.7%, to 13,104.58, after the Fed’s guidance on its bond purchases overnight.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jettisoned 604.02 points, or 2.9%, to 20,382.87, a nine-month low.
Stocks in Hong Kong and Sydney were slammed after preliminary data released by HSBC showed its China Purchasing Managers’ Index for June slipped to a nine-month low of 48.3, staying under the 50-point level for a second straight month. A reading below 50 shows conditions worsened.
Shares of Cnooc Ltd. skidded 4.4% and gold miner Zijin Mining Corp. fell 1.8% in Hong Kong, while
In Sydney, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. lost 6.6%, also weighed after it cut its outlook for iron-ore shipments, and gold miner Newcrest Mining Ltd. gave up 3.6%.
Energy producer Inpex Corp. dropped 3.7% in Tokyo, and Korea Zinc Co. gave up 1.6% in Seoul.
Real-estate stocks retreated in Japan after the Fed’s decision, with Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. losing 4.9% and Mitsui Fudosan Co. dropping 3.8%.
Among other notable decliners, shares of Nikon Corp. fell 5.8%, Hitachi Construction Machinery Corp, gave up 5.3%, and convenience-store operator Seven & I Holdings Co. shed 2.7%.
But some automobile exporters advanced as the U.S. dollar jumped after a rally in Treasury yields overnight in the wake of the Fed decision. Shares of Subaru-maker Fuji Heavy Industries Co. rose 1%, and Mazda Motor Corp. climbed 2.2%.
Banks and other high dividend-yield issues fell in Australia after the the Australian dollar got knocked below 93 U.S. cents in the wake of the Fed’s decision.
Shares of Westpac Banking Corp. lost 3.7%, and Commonwealth Bank of Australia fell 3.1%.
CHINA
The Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 fell 79.29 points, or 3.3%, to 2,312.47
The losses came as two short-term interbank money market rates jumped to record levels, while the People’s Bank of China refrained from injecting liquidity.
Chinese banks extended losses in the absence of any efforts by policy makers to ease tight money-market conditions.
Heavyweight stock China Construction Bank Corp. lost 5.2%, and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. shed 3.8% in Hong Kong. The banks’ Shanghai-listed shares fell 2% and 2.2%, respectively.
Jiangxi Copper Co. slid 3.9% in Shanghai.
In other markets;
Taiwan’s Taiex Index swooned 108.48 points, or 1.4%, to 7,888.91
Singapore’s Straits Times Index dipped 80.53 points, or 2.5%, to 3,133,26
Korea’s Kospi Index ditched 37.82 points, or 2%, to 1,850.49
In New Zealand, the Exchange 50 Gross Index docked 47.03 points, or 1.1%, to 4,398.52
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 skidded 102.99 points, or 2.1%, to 4,758.39
