Hong Kong stocks saw their earlier losses melt away and closed marginally higher at the close of Tuesday’s trading.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index lost 59.25 points, or 0.3%, to 17,652.48, amid lingering concerns about Greek debt problems.
The yen weakened a little against the U.S. dollar to ¥118.69, compared with ¥118.58 late Monday in New York.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index eked up 7.10 points to 24,528.10.
In Hong Kong, Chinese auto makers mostly rose, as data from an industry group showed China’s domestic auto sales climbed 7.6% in January from a year ago. Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd. jumped 2.2%, and Dongfeng Motor Group Co., Ltd. advanced 1.6%.
However, HSBC Holdings plc declined 1.3%, extending losses after a report over the weekend on alleged tax evasion and money laundering at its Swiss unit.
Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. also dropped 0.3%, despite comments by the exchange’s chief executive Charles Li on Tuesday that they would likely expand the stocks mainland investors can buy via the Shanghai-Hong Kong Connect program, while the second half of this year might be a “realistic timing” for the launch of Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect.
CHINA
Data showing China’s consumer-price inflation at its lowest in five years was balanced by news that the Chinese central bank had injected liquidity into the markets helping the sentiment.
The Shanghai CS300 index gained 61.02 points, or 1.8%, to 3,406.94
Earlier in the day, official data showed that China’s consumer-price index rose 0.8% in January from a year earlier, down from a 1.5% gain in December, marking the lowest increase since November 2009. The producer-price index fell 4.3% year-on-year in January, accelerating from a 3.3% drop in the previous month.
Meanwhile, the People’s Bank of China announced that it had pumped 80 billion yuan ($13 billion U.S.) into the banking system via reverse repurchase agreements.
In other markets;
The Kospi in Korea slid 11.14 points, or 0.6%, to 1,935.86
In Taiwan, the Taiex index dropped 27.80 points, or 0.3%, to 9,393.70
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index took on 16.22 points, or 0.5%, to 3,434.24
New Zealand’s NZX 50 index recovered 14.52 points, or 0.3%, to 5.784.09
The S&P/ASX index dipped 14.36 points, or 0.3%, to 5,800.57
