Asian markets ended mostly lower Thursday, with banking and brokerage stocks skidding in Tokyo, Sydney and Mumbai as investors awaited the further word on negotiations over a U.S. government multibillion-dollar rescue plan for the financial sector.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed down 108.5 points or 0.9% at 12,006.5 while the benchmark Hang Seng index was off 27.56 points or 0.15% at 18,934.43.
On the economic front, the Ministry of Finance said that Japan's trade deficit was 324 billion yen in August, recording the country's first shortfall in seven months. The deficit was in the upper end of the wide range of forecasts for the trade balance, between 290 billion yen and 331.6 billion yen, and was well below the revised surplus of 85.5 billion yen in July. Exports for the month were up 0.3% on year, while imports jumped an annual 17.3%, despite a 21.8% decline in imports to the United States.
Meanwhile, corporate service prices in Japan were up 1.4% on year in August, posting a score of 95.2, according to a report from the Bank of Japan. That was higher than the 1.2% annual expansion that analysts had been expecting and was also up from the 1.3% gain on year in July. On a monthly basis, corporate service prices were down 0.4%.
Sea transport, trading house, and oil stocks led the decliners, while insurers posted gains. Kawasaki Kisen fell 5.6%, Mitsui OSK Lines tumbled 6.3% and Nippon Yusen plummeted 5.7%. Among trading houses, Mitsubishi Corp plunged 6.7% and Mitsui & Co slumped 7.1%. Oil and gas miner Inpex Holdings lost 3.6%, Nippon Oil shed 6.1%, and Nippon Mining Holding dropped 4.4%.
Exporters closed weaker, as the yen strengthened against the dollar. Toyota Motor fell 2.5%, Tokyo Electron dropped 2.3%, Sony lost 1.2%, Honda Motor plunged 3.8%, and Canon slipped 0.2%.
Among banks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group gave away 2.0%, but Mizuho Financial Group gained 1.5% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group advanced 0.4%. Contradicting earlier reports, the Nikkei newspaper said that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group would not take a stake in Goldman Sachs. Nomura Holdings, Japan's largest brokerage firm, lost 2.9%.
Insurers finished higher, with Tokio Marine Holdings rose 2.1%, T&D Holdings edged up 0.2%, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group added 0.3% and Sompo Japan Insurance advanced 0.7%.
CHINA
The Chinese stock market closed sharply higher, extending its gains for a second consecutive trading session. The market rose sharply in the morning session, after the Shanghai exchange eased purchase rules for major shareholders in another bid to support the markets, but pared some of the gains in the afternoon session. Brokerages continued to rise amid hopes that margin trading would be launched soon.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closed up 80.69 points or 3.64% at 2,297.50, after surging more than 5% in early trade.
Haitong Securities jumped 10.0%, Hong Yuan Securities surged 9.1%, and CITIC Securities soared by the 10.0% daily limit. China Oilfield Services gained 7.8% and China Offshore Oil Engineering advanced 9.9%. Both the companies are units of state-owned CNOOC Group.
China Shipping Container Lines and China State Shipbuilding rose 10.05 each, while China Life Insurance advanced 7.9%.
China United Telecommunications gained 2.5% after its parent company bought 50 million of its A-shares. According to the company, its parent will further increase its stake within the next 12 months by not more than 2%.
Xugong Science & Technology jumped 10.0% after its board decided to place 322.36 million new A-shares at 16.47 yuan each with parent Xugong Machinery for certain assets of the latter.
Elsewhere:
Taiwan's Taiex closed down 1.2% at 6,060.
Singapore's STI closed down 1.4% at 2,444.
Malaysia's KLCI closed down 0.4% at 1,024.
Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index closed down 0.7% at 1,870.
South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4% a day after local regulators announced restrictions on short-selling activities, with effect from Oct. 13.
New Zealand's NZX 50 index slipped 0.7% to 3,237.72.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 shed 1.1%.
with files from other wire services
