Asian stocks closed mixed on Friday, although gains were less than convincing among the benchmarks that rose with investors showing signs of increasing unease given the extent of the recent rally.
Gains on Wall Street and falls in oil prices did little to help Tokyo, down 1.51 percent on heavy profit taking, while Bangkok plummeted 3.09 percent amid the ongoing aftermath of the New Year's Eve bomb attacks.
Taipei followed Japan's lead and slumped 1.25 percent, Seoul was down 0.83 percent and Sydney by 0.23 percent, while investors cashed-up on the heady gains made recently in Shanghai with its benchmark slumping 2.74 percent.
PHOTO: AFP
Hong Kong was the best on the day with a 0.92 percent surge, but trade was volatile after early sharp falls. Jakarta rose a modest 0.46 percent, but gains in Wellington, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur were only slight.
TAIPEI
Share prices closed 1.25 percent lower as technical gains triggered by Wall Street's mild overnight bounce wobbled amid creditor banks' anxiety over restructuring plans sought by two Taiwanese companies.
Dealers said concern over whether North Korea would conduct a second nuclear test also pressured the market.
China Rebar Co (中國力霸) and Chia Hsin Food and Synthetic Fiber Co (嘉新食品化纖), two units of conglomerate Rebar Asia Pacific Group (力霸亞太企業集團), are seeking court permission for reorganization, unnerving their creditor banks.
The weighted index closed down 98.94 points at 7,835.57 on turnover of NT$137.64 billion (US$4.22 billion).
China Rebar and Chia Hsin Food and Syntheic Fiber have filed applications with the Taipei District Court seeking to undertake the reorganization, along with a request for urgent asset protection.
The court has granted their request for asset protection, giving the two companies a 90-day period during which their assets may not be seized by creditors.
TOKYO
Share prices closed down 1.51 percent, coming off eight-month highs as investors locked in profits and reacted cautiously to a stronger yen.
Dealers said a sharp fall in world oil prices weighed on energy stocks. Many investors also appeared reluctant to buy into the market ahead of key US jobs data and a three-day holiday weekend in Tokyo.
The NIKKEI-225 index of leading shares closed down 262.08 points at 17,091.59. Volume rose to 2.15 billion shares from 1.06 billion during Thursday's half-day session.
Market speculation about a possible rate hike in Japan this month pushed the yen higher against the dollar, in turn dampening buying interest in export-oriented shares, dealers said.
A Japanese daily, the Yomiuri Shimbun, reported that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) might raise its benchmark interest rate from 0.25 percent as early as on Jan. 18, although most market players expect no change just yet.
"I don't think there is any need for the BOJ to raise interest rates this month considering the current economic environment," said Hideo Mizutani, chief strategist at Sieg Securities.
HONG KONG
Share prices closed 0.93 percent higher in volatile trade as a strong rebound in property stocks helped the market reverse early losses driven by extended profit-taking.
Dealers said the property sector attracted renewed interest on hopes of strong housing sales this year due to launch of new projects and expectations of stable interest rates.
The Hang Seng Index closed up 185.70 points at 20,211.28.
"Properties saw strong buying interest after yesterday's sharp falls as investors view this sector as a laggard and relatively cheap," said Castor Pang, strategist at Sun Hung Kai Financial group.
Pang said the outlook for the property sector this year is positive owing to expected stable interest rate environment and new project launches.
SEOUL
Share prices closed 0.83 percent lower, with sentiment undercut by fears of another nuclear test by North Korea.
Dealers said the market opened firmer on Wall Street's overnight gains and lower oil prices but quickly lost ground on heavy program selling ahead of the options expiry and corporate earnings season.
The KOSPI closed down 11.53 points at 1,385.76.
SHANGHAI
Share prices closed sharply mixed after the Shanghai market was dragged down by profit-taking in banks and Shenzhen rose on rotational interest in automakers.
Dealers said the losses in Shanghai, with Bank of China and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) both down by their 10 percent daily limit, may have been linked to the upcoming introduction of futures contracts.
At the same time, while the losses were heavy, they were also expected given the seven consecutive record finishes through to Thursday, and most investors remain confident that more gains are to come on the back of fresh fund inflows and new listings.
The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B-shares, closed down 74.39 points or 2.74 percent at 2,641.33.
SYDNEY
Shares closed down 0.23 percent, led lower by weaker overnight oil and metal prices.
They said further drops in metal and oil prices hurt resource and energy stocks while other sectors were mixed ahead of the release of key employment data in the US later on Friday.
The S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 12.8 points to 5,572.0.
SINGAPORE
Share prices closed 0.17 percent higher after late buying in selected large caps helped the market shrug off early listlessness.
Dealers said investors pocketed gains earlier in the day from the market's recent bull run.
The Straits Times Index was up 5.24 points at 3,029.04.
KUALA LUMPUR
Share prices closed 0.20 percent higher due to buying interest in blue chips and plantations stocks.
Dealers said blue chips were picked up on expectations that the market will extend its gains next week while plantation stocks were in focus due to the uptrend in crude palm oil prices.
The composite index gained 2.22 points to 1,120.40.
BANGKOK
Share prices sank by 3.09 percent, capping a week of losses as worries over local politics intensified amid government warnings of more bombings and rumors of another coup.
Dealers said bluechip stocks fell across the board amid increasing uncertainties in the market that led to a confidence crisis.
The composite index lost 20.03 points to 628.19.
JAKARTA
Share prices closed 0.46 percent higher on a technical rebound, supported by gains in some lower liners.
However, the upside was capped by further profit-taking in large caps including Perusahaan Gas Negara, Indosat and Bank Mandiri, dealers said.
The composite index closed up 8.477 points at 1,832.550 points.
MANILA
Share prices closed 0.54 percent lower as the market consolidated after hitting near 10-year highs earlier in the week.
The composite index was down 16.35 points at 2,996.39.
WELLINGTON
Share prices closed 0.16 percent higher on Friday in quiet trading.
The NZX-50 gross index rose 6.30 points to 4,035.26.
MUMBAI
Share prices closed flat in cautious trade as investors bought into select mid and small-cap stocks.
Dealers said the markets may see select buying in index heavyweights based on the earnings outlook going ahead.
The 30-share SENSEX fell 11.19 points to 13,860.52.
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