Asian stocks traded mixed Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark ending marginally higher on gains in exporters such as Toshiba Corp., while Australia and India set intraday highs.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 stock index rose 34.01 points, or 0.21 percent, to 16,435.74 while markets in Hong Kong were closed for holidays.
Gainers included consumer loan company Promise Co., which rose 3.8 percent to 2,485 yen. A Topix subindex that tracks the performance of consumer loan companies has tumbled 14 percent since the beginning of September as fresh concerns about earnings in the sector resurfaced this month after credit card company Mitsubishi UFJ Nicos said it expected to book a massive loss for this financial year.
In the banking sector, Resona Holdings Inc. rose 4.1 percent to end at 179,000 yen.
ELSEWHERE:
BANGKOK: Thailand's main stock index rose 1.1 percent to 844.40.
JAKARTA: Indonesia's benchmark index advanced 1.3 percent at 2,361.013.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares edged higher, with the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index ending up 0.3 percent at 1,320.89.
MANILA: Philippine shares advanced, helped by prospects of further U.S. interest rate cuts in the wake of weak U.S. economic data. The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index gained 35.08 points, or 1 percent, to 3,475.75.
SINGAPORE: Singaporean shares rose after a seesaw session, with the benchmark Straits Times Index rising 25.27 points, or 0.7 percent, to 3,650.09.
TAIPEI: Taiwan shares rose to an eight-week high on strong performances from shares of raw materials companies. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange rose 152.19 points, or 1.67 percent, to 9,257.47.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand stocks put in a stronger showing Wednesday after two relatively stagnant sessions, boosted by solid gains from market heavyweight Telecom and other blue-chip stocks. The benchmark NZX-50 index closed up 34.3 points or 0.8 percent to 4,275.97.
SYDNEY: A sliding resources sector offset a rising financial sector, leaving the Australian share market almost flat Wednesday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed down 1.6 points at 6,481.4.
with files from other wire services
