Asia consolidates after sharp gains

"The downturn is expected to be a short-term phenomenon with the long-term uptrend remaining intact."

Stanley Yeh, Yuanta Core Pacific Capital analyst

Asian stocks closed mixed on Friday with the market continuing to consolidate in the wake of sharp gains made earlier in the week, dealers said.

They said sentiment remained strong after overnight gains on Wall Street amid improved earnings results and the prospect that the US cycle of interest-rate hikes could be nearing an end.

However, record oil prices remained a concern while a fall in metal prices also impacted on trade.

Seoul again stood out with a 1.2 percent rise and record finish, Tokyo registered a mild gain, and Manila neared a seven-year high with a modest rise, while Sydney eased 0.51 percent.

Taipei share prices closed 0.14 percent lower after an early rally driven by results from AU Optronics (友達光電) gave way to late profit-taking.

The TAIEX shed 9.69 points at 7,093.05 on turnover of NT$167.78 billion (US$5.19 billion US).

Share prices are expected to correct next week after recent sustained gains, with investors likely to take profits and test the key 7,000 points support level, dealers said on Friday.

They said the market came off its highs in late trade on Friday, which could indicate a build-up of selling pressure after several winning weeks.

However, heavy losses are unlikely as foreign investors remain optimistic about the local bourse on expectations that Taiwan's economy will benefit from an increase in commercial exchanges with China after Beijing unveiled a series of measures to boost cross-strait tourism and trade links.

The trading range is expected to be between 7,000 and 7,160 points next week.

For the week to April 21, the weighted index closed up 140.51 points or 2.02 percent, after a gain of 2.52 percent the previous week.

Average daily turnover stood at NT$136.89 billion (US$4.25 billion US), up from NT$107.33 billion the previous week.

"It would be no surprise for the market to suffer a technical retreat after the recent significant performance," Yuanta Core Pacific Capital (元大京華證券) analyst Stanley Yeh (葉德霖) said.

Before Friday's 0.14 percent decline, the market rose 11.6 percent in the preceeding four weeks.

"However, the downturn is expected to be a short-term phenomenon with the long-term uptrend remaining intact. The main driving force ... will be foreign capital inflows," Yeh said.

"While profit taking may eat away part of the recent gains, the market is expected to see quick rotational interest amid ample liquidity," he said.

Tokyo share prices closed higher on the back of a positive lead from Wall Street and high hopes for an upcoming slew of domestic earnings news.

Dealers said that robust US profit reports, which helped propel the Dow Jones blue-chip index to a six-year high overnight, had raised expectations for Japan's annual results season which gets into full swing next week.

The NIKKEI-225 index gained 86.43 points or 0.50 percent to 17,403.96. Over the week the NIKKEI rose 0.98 percent and the TOPIX added 0.70 percent.

Seoul share prices rose 1.2 percent for another record finish with sentiment buoyed by Wall Street's overnight rally and positive results from US majors.

The KOSPI index added 17.16 points at 1,451.31.

Hong Kong share prices closed lower, down 0.19 percent, on a mild technical correction after the market gained more than 630 points over the last four sessions.

Dealers said that the fall was cushioned by derivatives-related buying of Sun Hung Kai Properties and rotational interest in select blue chips.

The Hang Seng Index closed down 32.19 points at 16,912.15.

The Hang Seng has been trading this week at its highest levels in six years.

Shanghai share prices closed 2.24 percent higher, led by oil major and market heavyweight Sinopec as stocks chalked up their biggest single-day gain in more than two months.

The Shanghai A-share Index rose 32.55 points to 1,485.93 and the Shenzhen A-share Index was up 1.98 points or 0.55 percent at 360.85. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B-shares, closed up 30.89 points or 2.23 percent at 1,416.79, an 18-month high.

Sydney share prices closed down 0.51 percent on profit-taking in resource stocks although the market's fall was limited by gains in the banking sector.

The S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 26.8 points to 5,250.1.

Singapore share prices rose 0.76 percent for another record finish, this time above 2,600 points as investors bought in ahead of general elections in May and upcoming quarterly results.

The Straits Times Index added 19.72 points at 2,603.45.

Malaysian share prices closed O.17 percent higher due to follow-through buying driven by the ringgit's strength against the dollar which outweighed inflation fears.

The composite index rose 1.57 points to 948.19.

Bangkok share prices closed 0.19 percent lower on profit-taking after rising to a two-year high as softer oil prices led the key energy-linked stocks down. The composite index fell 1.51 points to 773.06.

Mumbai share prices closed broadly flat, recovering from a sharp early selloff, and remained above the key 12,000 level.

The 30-share SENSEX index closed down 9.2 points or 0.08 percent at 12,030.3 after crossing the historic 12,000 level on Thursday, powered by domestic funds buying.