For Asian exporters struggling to contend with falling demand, the Federal Reserve's strategy to drive down U.S. lending rates to fight the recession engulfing the world's largest economy may well sound like music.
But they'll still have to contend with the prospect of a further impact on their businesses that a U.S. dollar weakness versus local currencies might bring along.
The negative impact played on investors' minds in Thursday's trading, with shares of Japanese and South Korean exporters declining and in turn dragging down the broader markets after a higher opening.
Japan's Nikkei 225 tailed off 26.21 or 0.3% to 7,945.96.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched ahead 13.75 points or 0.1% to 13, 130.92
Overnight, the Fed said it would buy $300 billion U.S. in longer-term Treasury bonds and purchase an additional $750 billion U.S. of agency mortgage-backed securities to ease mortgage rates with the aim of helping arrest the slide in the U.S. economy.
Among Japanese export-dependent companies, shares of Sony Corp. ended down 0.9%, Toyota Motor Corp. lost 2.2% and Mazda Motor Co. gave up 1.8%. In Seoul, shares of Hyundai Motor Co. lost 4.6%, while Posco dropped 2.5%.
Regionally, markets ended narrowly mixed for the most part to culminate a choppy session.
In the currency markets, the U.S. dollar recently changed hands at 95.73 yen, down from 98.11 yen the previous day. Against the Korean currency, the greenback fetched 1,397 won, compared with 1,420.60 won.
But despite the big overnight move in currency-exchange rates, some economists viewed the Fed's latest moves as a positive development for the U.S. economy, and by extension, for Asian exporters.
Elsewhere:
China’s Shanghai Composite Index gained 49.91 points, or 2.1% at 2,382.56
Singapore’s Straits Times Index jumped 8.92 or 0.6%, to 1,584.86
South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index eased off 8.14 points, or 0.7%, to 1,161.81
Taiwan’s Taiex Index settled back 11.61 points, or 0.2% to 5,035.93
New Zealand’s NZX Index advanced 26.88 points, or 1% to 2,633.21
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index gained 33.90 or 1% to 3,480.20
