Asian share markets ended mostly lower Friday, with consumer-financing companies dragging down Japan's benchmark index after Aiful said it was preparing to apply for debt-relief procedures.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo settled back 73.26 points, or 0.7%, to 10,370.54.
Aiful shares plunged 27.2%, wiping out more than a quarter of its market value, though trading volumes in Tokyo remained thin ahead of an extended holiday for the market from Monday to Wednesday. Aiful's decline came after the company said it had been consulting the Japanese Association of Turnaround Professionals as part of efforts to revive its business. Fellow consumer-finance firm Promise dropped 0.8%, while Takefuji slumped 9.5%.
Aiful also said it will ask Sumitomo Trust & Banking, Aozora Bank and other lenders to reschedule repayment of loans totaling roughly 280 billion yen ($3.08 billion U.S.). Sumitomo Trust & Banking shares ended 0.2% higher, recovering from their early declines, while Aozora pared losses to finish 0.7% lower.
There were also concerns that the new Democratic Party of Japan-led government may take steps to support small businesses, hurting lenders in the process.
Among regional banks, Chiba Bank ended down 1.1%, while Bank of Yokohama declined 2.2%.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index shrank from its 13-month high reached Thursday, dropping 145.06 points, or 0.7%, to 21,623.45.
For the week, Japanese, Chinese and Australian stocks declined, while Hong Kong, South Korean and Taiwanese shares posted gains.
Traders said the volatility was no great surprise, with investors growing a little uneasy at the pace of the recent gains.
Continued buying by foreign funds was supporting shares in South Korea, where shipbuilders and shipping companies ended higher. Daewoo Shipbuilding climbed 3.9%, with STX Pan Ocean rising 4.1% and Korea Line jumping 4.6%.
Poly (Hong Kong) Investments Ltd. surged 15.5% after it said it planned to sell a 2.3% stake to China's sovereign-wealth fund, and also planned to sell shares to its parent company in exchange for property assets in various Chinese cities
Commodity stocks were mostly lower in Sydney and Shanghai as base metals lost some momentum, with BHP Billiton down 2.3%, while in Shanghai, shares of Jiangxi Copper dropped 5.1% and Yunnan Chihong Zinc and Germanium lost 4.8%.
In Taiwan, Chi Mei Optoelectronics rose 4.3% after the Commercial Times reported, citing unnamed equipment suppliers, that the tech firm plans to resume installing equipment at its 8.5-generation flat-panel plant at the end of September.
In currency markets, the euro recently declined to $1.4683 U.S. from $1.4737 U.S. in New York, and to 133.84 yen, from 134.38 yen, while the U.S. dollar was steady at 91.12 yen.
Elsewhere:
Shanghai’s 300 Composite Index slid 120.41 points, or 3.6%, to 3,199.69
Singapore’s Straits Times Index gave back 24.69 points to 2,647.91.
South Korea’s Kospi index gained 4.24 points, or 0.3%, to 1,699.71, a fresh closing high for 2009
Taiwan’s Taiex tacked on 49.25 points, or 0.7%, to 7,526.55, also a year-to-date high
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index picked up 3.66 points to 3,156.46
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 stepped back from an 11-month high by losing 21.70 points, or 0.5% to 4,693.20
