Asian stocks closed mainly lower Wednesday, with Shanghai's Composite surging 6.1% to lead regional gainers, as investors chased Sinopec shares higher on hopes that a new gasoline tax under consideration could herald market-based pricing for fuels.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down 55.2 points, or 0.7% at 8,273.2 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index finished 0.8% lower at 12,815.80.
On the economic front, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said that total industrial activity in Japan eased 0.1% in September compared to the previous month. That was in line with analyst expectations following a revised 1.7% monthly decline in August. On a quarterly basis, industrial activity fell 0.8% in the third quarter compared to the preceding second quarter.
Financials tumbled on Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group's dismal results for the six months ended September and ongoing worries about the global financial sector. On Tuesday, Mitsubishi UFJ reported a 61% fall in its profit for the second quarter and reiterated its recently lowered full-year forecast. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group plunged 6.4%, Mizuho Financial Group tumbled 7.5%, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group fell 7.9%. Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance fell 4.1% and T&D Holdings lost 2.8%. Top brokerage Nomura Holdings sank 11.6% and Daiwa Securities Group dropped 2.7%.
High tech shares were lower on worries about weak consumer spending stronger yen. Tokyo Electron fell 5.5%, TDK dropped 2.8%, and Advantest gave away 2.9% after the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, or Soxx, fell 2% overnight.
Among exporters, Sony fell 2.8%, Canon slipped 0.4%, Honda Motor declined 1.0%, and Toyota closed unchanged. Nikon added 1.4%. Mazda slid 1.1% after U.S. automaker Ford Motor, the holder of a 33.4% stake in Mazda, said it has sold a 20% stake for about $540 million.
NTT DoCoMo climbed 1.3% after it said that it would partner with South Korean firm KT Freetel to develop a smart phone that features free software from Google.
Bucking the trend, Astellas Pharma jumped 4.7%, Shionogi surged 6.5%, and Eisai Co added 1.8%.
CHINA
The Chinese stock market rallied, despite weakness among the stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region. The key index closed above the psychologically important 2,000 mark, reversing most of Tuesday's losses. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index jumped 115.0 points or 6.1% to close at 2,017.5 after fluctuating between 2,023.9 and 1,883.8. Brokerages, insurers and property developers led the stocks higher.
Among insurers, China Life Insurance jumped 6.1% and rival Ping An Insurance advanced 4.6%. CITIC Securities surged 6.4%, Changjiang Securities soared 7.1%, Guoyuan Securities gained 6.7% and Haitong Securities climbed 3.8%. In the real estate sector, China Vanke rose 5.7%, Gemdale surged by the daily limit of 10% and COFCO Property added 5.1%.
Market heavy weight PetroChina lost 4.6%, but oil refiner Sinopec rallied 7.5%. In the airline sector, Air China added 3.8%, China Eastern Airlines rocketed 9.9% and China Southern Airlines gained 3.1%.
Elsewhere:
Taiwan's Taiex closed down 0.5% at 4,284.
Singapore's STI closed down 1.6% at 1,665.
Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index closed down 0.8% at 1,180.
Malaysia's KLCI closed down 5.4 points at 877.
South Korea's Kospi also fell, down 1.9% to 1,016.82.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was off 0.7% at 3,499.60.
with files from other wire services
