Asian stocks fell a second week amid concern political discord would prevent Europe from resolving its debt crisis as global growth slows. Losses were limited on speculation China would take new steps to boost the world’s second-largest economy.
Esprit Holdings Ltd, a clothier that counts Europe as its largest market, sank 6.6 percent in Hong Kong after missing earnings estimates. Woongjin Coway Co slumped 24 percent in Seoul after the water-purifier maker’s parent filed for bankruptcy protection. United Spirits Ltd surged about 24 percent in Mumbai after London-based Diageo PLC confirmed it was in talks to buy the maker of whiskies and brandies.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 0.8 percent to 122.47 this week, its second-straight weekly loss. The gauge gained 4 percent for the month as central banks from Europe, the US, Japan and China took action to support economic growth.
“A period of consolidation in the month ahead looks the more likely outcome,” said George Boubouras, Melbourne-based head of investment strategy at UBS AG’s Australian wealth management unit. “In Europe, there will continue to be some lingering challenges.”
Stocks on Asia’s benchmark index were valued at about 12.8 times estimated earnings on average, compared with about 13.9 times for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and 11.9 times for the STOXX Europe 600, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
In Taipei, the TAIEX surged past the 7,700-point mark on Friday, bolstered by buying in select large-cap stocks, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海), dealers said.
Certain China-concept stocks, in particular retailers with close business ties with China, also attracted buying on hopes that Beijing would come up with stimulus measures to boost domestic demand, they said.
The TAIEX closed up 31.36 points, or 0.4 percent, at 7,715.16 on Friday, but it was slightly down 0.5 percent for the week, Taiwan Stock Exchange figures showed.
Market sentiment remained cautious toward the world’s economic climate, causing many investors to stay on the sidelines and keeping the daily trading volume moderate, dealers said
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average sank 2.6 percent this week as industrial production fell more than economists forecast last month and a territorial dispute between Japan and China intensified. Automakers declined as violent protests against Japanese businesses in China forced production cuts.
China’s Shanghai Composite Index added 2.9 percent to 2,086.169 amid expectation the government would offer measures to boost the equities market after the gauge dipped below 2,000. All the index’s gains this week came on Thursday after a Shanghai Securities News report the regulator might introduce measures to buoy stocks.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 0.5 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.5 percent. South Korea’s KOSPI slid 0.3 percent as the nation’s industrial production fell more than expected last month.
In other markets on Friday:
Wellington closed 0.66 percent, or 25.12 points, higher from Thursday at 3,834.15.
Manila closed 0.84 percent higher, adding 44.61 points to 5,346.10.
Mumbai gained 0.99 percent, or 183.24 points, to 18,762.74.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day
Thousands of parents in Singapore are furious after a Cordlife Group Ltd (康盛人生集團), a major operator of cord blood banks in Asia, irreparably damaged their children’s samples through improper handling, with some now pursuing legal action. The ongoing case, one of the worst to hit the largely untested industry, has renewed concerns over companies marketing themselves to anxious parents with mostly unproven assurances. This has implications across the region, given Cordlife’s operations in Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The parents paid for years to have their infants’ cord blood stored, with the understanding that the stem cells they contained