Asian stocks fell for a second week after a US jobs report missed economists’ estimates and concern grew that Europe’s crisis of government debt is spreading.
LG Electronics Inc, which counts North America as its biggest market, slumped 11 percent in Seoul this week after a government report showed US employers hired fewer workers last month than forecast. Nintendo Co, a Japanese game maker that gets 34 percent of its sales in Europe, retreated 8.1 percent after the euro weakened. Mitsui & Co, which holds a stake in an oil field operated by BP PLC where an oil spill is unfolding, tumbled 9.5 percent in Tokyo on concern earnings will suffer.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index slid 0.9 percent to 112.44 this week. The gauge plunged 3.3 percent on Monday, its steepest drop since March 30 last year after a Hungarian government official said the country’s economy was in a “very grave situation.”
“What I’m afraid of is that the volatility of the euro can trigger turmoil in the financial markets, prompting investors to reduce risk assets including stocks,” said Akio Yoshino, chief economist in Tokyo at Societe Generale Asset Management (Japan) Inc, which manages the equivalent of US$18 billion.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average tumbled 2 percent this week even as a government report showed Japan’s GDP rose at an annualized 5 percent rate in the three months ended March 31, faster than the 4.2 percent projected by economists.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 1.3 percent in Sydney, as gains in oil and copper prices lifted mining companies. The statistics bureau reported on Thursday that the jobless rate fell to 5.2 percent last month from 5.4 percent from the previous month.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index has slumped about 13 percent from its high this year on April 15 amid growing concern European countries in addition to Greece will struggle to curb their budget deficits or repay debt. The decline has dragged the average price of companies in the gauge to 14.4 times estimated earnings, compared with 20.1 times at the beginning of this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Taiwan’s TAIEX rose 117.72, or 1.63 percent, to 7,299.49 at the close of Taipei trading on Friday after a strong showing on Wall Street overnight as a euro rebound against the US dollar gave investors at home and abroad some relief from concerns over debt problems in the eurozone, according to dealers.
The TAIEX fell 0.6 percent this week.
The financial sector posted the largest gains, up 2.7 percent. Paper and pulp, and plastics and chemicals closed up 1.6 percent each, while machinery and electronics shares were 1.5 percent higher.
Other markets on Friday:
Manila closed 1.27 percent, or 40.95 points, higher from Thursday at 3,265.44.
Wellington rose 1.30 percent, or 38.94 points, from Thursday to 3,041.27.
Mumbai rose 0.84 percent, or 142.87 points, from Thursday to 17,064.95.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique