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Asian stocks edge down before G7 meeting

Asian stocks closed the week mostly lower, with investors consolidating ahead of the G7 finance ministers meeting in Washington on Frdiay and a slew of US economic data due out next week.

Investors had been holding out for CPI figures amid signs the US Federal Reserve was still prepared to hike interest rates to curb inflation resulting in a mixed performance in recent trading days.

That mood was expected to continue with inflation figures not due out of the US until next Tuesday while retail sales and residential construction figures would also provide further insights into the state of the US economy.

This, coupled with anxiety over the G7 meeting in Washington, where Asian currencies and the cost of exports were expected to be discussed, weighed on sentiment and profit-taking persisted throughout the day.

As a result Tokyo was down 1.01 percent, Seoul shed 0.32 percent, Sydney fell 0.37 percent and Manila shed 0.19 percent.

Shanghai ended nine days of record gains and eased 0.36 percent as Hong Kong fell 0.19 percent.

Wellington, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur closed little changed while Jakarta bucked the trend and rose 0.56 percent to a record high and Mumbai surged 2.06 percent, both gaining on strong corporate earnings.

Bangkok was closed for a public holiday.

TAIPEI

Taiwanese share prices closed up 0.54 percent at the day's high yesterday, with sentiment bolstered by gains on Wall Street overnight, dealers said.

The Taipei bourse held a special trading session yesterday to make up for the market being closed on April 6 during the Tomb-Sweeping holiday weekend.

The weighted index closed up 42.82 points at 8,045.12, bringing its cumulative gains for the week to 40.51 points or 0.51 percent. Turnover was NT$75.02 billion (US$2.27 billion). Risers led decliners 756 to 353, with 209 stocks unchanged.

Kai Yuan Securities Investment Consultant Co (開元投顧) president Tom Tang (湯建源) said the New York gains were positive for the local bourse, but an absence of major fresh leads prevented investors from chasing prices much higher.

Concerns over recent probes by prosecutors into listed companies over alleged irregularities also kept investors on the sidelines, he said.

However, long-term sentiment had improved after the market successfully defended the 8,000-point level, he added.

"The local bourse may continue its upward consolidation unless companies report unexpected earnings results next week," Tang said.

TOKYO

Share prices skidded lower as investors waited nervously to see whether world finance ministers would discuss the weakness of the yen at a weekend meeting.

The NIKKEI-225 index fell 176.47 points or 1.01 percent to 17,363.95.

"Investors remain sceptical about whether US stocks will continue rising after the latest minutes from the Federal Reserve's meeting showed wariness over inflation," said Hideo Mizutani, chief strategist at Sieg Securities.

He said investors "found no need to rush into buying shares as there were no especially positive incentives to chase prices higher."

Market players remained cautious ahead of the G7 meeting amid speculation that the weakness of the yen could be raised by European finance chiefs who are worried that the yen-euro exchange rate is penalizing eurozone exporters.

HONG KONG

Share prices closed 0.19 percent weaker as investors locked in profits in property stocks amid an uncertain outlook for interest rates.

Dealers said trading was also cautious ahead of key inflation data in the US and a meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bankers this weekend.

The Hang Seng Index closed down 39.24 points at 20,340.97.

SEOUL

Share prices closed 0.32 percent lower but well off their lows as foreign investors continued to build positions in Samsung Electronics.

Samsung said its first quarter operating profit fell 42 percent quarter-on-quarter well below market expectations.

The KOSPI index closed down 4.83 points at 1,520.78.

SHANGHAI

Share prices closed 0.36 percent lower as investors booked profits to snap a nine day winning streak that lifted stocks to repeated record gains.

Dealers said trade was very heavy again running at more than US$30 billion as financial stocks and steelmakers lost ground in a volatile session that saw the key index climb into positive territory before succumbing to selling.

The Shanghai Composite Index closed down 12.76 points at 3,518.27 on record turnover of 166.49 billion yuan (US$21.54 billion).

SYDNEY

Share prices closed down 0.37 percent as investors took profits after the market hit record levels during the week.

Dealers said increased speculation of a rise in official interest rates also weighed on sentiment, they said.

The SP/ASX 200 fell 22.5 points to 6,135.7.

MUMBAI

Share prices rose 2.06 percent as higher-than-expected fourth quarter profits from earnings bellwether Infosys spurred fresh buying.

The SENSEX rose 270.25 points to 13,384.08 as software stocks gained across the board on the back of the Infosys results which kicked off the quarterly earnings season.
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