Asian Commentary - Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region were mostly higher Thursday on the back of Wall Street's gains overnight. The U.S. stocks gained as a smaller-than-expected U.S. services sector contraction eased concerns about a recession in the world's biggest economy. While soaring commodity prices lifted energy and mining stocks, a weaker yen boosted Japan's export-oriented issues. At 10:28 a.m. local time, Japan's Nikkei 225 index was up 153.64 points at 13,125.70 and the broader Topix index of all the First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was adding 9.74 points to 1,273.65. In early Tokyo deals, the U.S. dollar was trading in upper 103-yen level. At 10:08 a.m. local time, the dollar was quoted at 103.73-103.78 yen, up 0.11 yen from Wednesday's 5:00 p.m. quotes of 103.62-103.64 yen. On the economic front, the Bank of Japan's monetary policy committee began its meeting today. Additionally, foreigners were net sellers of Japanese stocks and bonds last week, while Japanese residents turned net buyers of foreign stocks and bonds. Among resources stocks, gold and copper producer Sumitomo Metal Mining jumped 3.02% after gold set a record high near US$1,000 an ounce on Wednesday as rising energy prices increased gold's appeal as a hedge against inflation and Inpex Holdings surged 5.13% after oil rallied to a record near $105 a barrel. Nippon Mining Holdings advanced 1.63%. In the property sector, Mitsui Fudosan jumped 4.26%, Mitsubishi Estate advanced 1.46% and Sumitomo Realty & Development climbed 1.48%. Toyota Motor gained 0.37% on a report that the automaker will begin marketing Toyota marque cars in South Korea. Among other auto stocks, Honda rose 1.30%, Nissan added 0.65% and Suzuki surged 2.99%, while Mazda slipped 0.49%. Banks were higher, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group edging up 0.34%, Mizuho Financial Group adding 0.74% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group advancing 1.27%. Tech gainers included Advantest 1.04%, Fanuc 1.07%, Fujitsu 2.05%, Minebea 5.43%, NEC 2.33%, Oki Electrical 0.94%, Sony 0.41% and Tokyo Electron 0.97%. Kyocera slipped 0.35%, while Matsushita Electrical Industrial was unchanged. At 11:19 a.m. local time, South Korea's KOSPI was up 8.58 points or 0.51% at 1,685.68. The U.S. stocks closed higher Wednesday as data on the U.S. service sector eased investors' concerns over a possible recession. The Dow Jones industrial average added 0.34% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index advanced 0.55%. The U.S. dollar opened at 948.8 won, up from Wednesday's close of 948.2 won. In the tech space, Hynix Semiconductors fell 1.23%, while LG Philips LCD jumped 2.61% and LG Electronics gained 2.71%. Samsung Electronics was unchanged. Automaker Hyundai Motor slipped 0.76%, but steel major POSCO climbed 1.95%. Among lenders, Woori Finance was unchanged, while Shinhan Group added 0.51% and KookMin Bank advanced 0.55%. At 11:57 a.m. local time, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index was up 24.7 points or 0.5% at 5,401.3 and the broader All Ordinaries index was up 26.8 points or 0.5% at 5,498.4. The Australian dollar opened higher after record commodity prices helped fuel demand for the high-yielding currency. The local unit opened at US$0.9309-0.9311, up from Wednesday's close of US$0.9255-0.9259. On the economic front, Australia's seasonally adjusted balance on goods and services showed a deficit of A$2.723 billion in January, an increase of 41% and A$786 million over the revised December figure, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Exports rose 2%, while imports jumped 5%. Meanwhile, the number of houses and apartments approved for construction in Australia increased in January by a seasonally adjusted 1.9% over December, marking a rebound. The world's biggest miner, BHP Billiton rose 1.33% and rival Rio Tinto advanced 1.39%. In the energy sector, Woodside Petroleum jumped 2.77%, while second-ranked Santos surged 2.99%. Gold miner Newcrest Mining climbed 2.90% and Lihir Gold moved up 1.95%. Among banks, National Australia Bank climbed 1.25% and Commonwealth Bank of Australia added 0.55%, but Australia and New Zealand Banking Group dropped 0.70% and Westpac Banking plunged 1.65%. In the retail space, David Jones edged up 0.25% and Woolworths added 0.40%, while Harvey Norman slipped 0.25%, JB Hi-Fi fell 1.61% and Wesfarmers, Coles' owner, plunged 2.51%. New Zealand's NZX 50 Index was losing 16.43 points or 0.45% to 3,603.02, while the NZX All Capital Index was declining 18.04 points or 0.49% to 3,637.53. On the economic front, the New Zealand government reported a budget deficit for the seven months ended January 2008. The government's operating deficit, excluding transfers to the national pension fund, loans, capital spending and cash held by state companies, totaled NZ$394 million, approximately $4.2 billion less than expected. The decline was attributed to a fall of NZ$2.5 billion in the value of assets held by the New Zealand Superannuation Fund and other investment funds. Tax receipts in New Zealand for the fiscal year through January resulted in a budget surplus of NZ$478 million, according to data released by the Treasury Department. However, the figure was smaller than the government's forecast surplus of NZ$588 million. Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand has left the official cash rate unchanged at 8.25%, as expected, and said that rate would need to remain at current levels for a significant time to ensure inflation outcomes of 1-3% on average over the medium term. The bank now expects New Zealand's GDP growth to be around 2% over the next three years. Among the top stocks, Telecom added 0.25%, while Contact Energy eased 0.61% and Fletcher Building lost 2.18%. In the retail space, Hellaby Holdings slumped 9.52% and Michael Hill edged down 0.98%, while The Warehouse Group added 0.83%. Hallenstein Glasson and Pumpkin Patch remained unchanged. Among other stocks, Steel & Tube climbed 1.45%. Auckland International Airport advanced 1.78% after Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, or CPPIB, said it had 18.1% of the company, up from 15.5% previously. Shareholders of the airport will know by April 12 if the government will approve CPPIB's bid for 40% of the airport. Air New Zealand gained 1.36%, while Nuplex declined 0.77% and Sky City remained unchanged. Energy scrip TrustPower gained 1.27% and Vector remained unchanged. Shares of finance company Dorchester Pacific slipped 6.06% after a 16.5% fall on Wednesday. The company had lowered its profit outlook for the full year by up to half, citing reduced lending volumes, lower fee income and increased provisions for loans. The New Zealand stock exchange said that trading volume for the month of February declined 13% from a year ago. The monthly trade numbers declined to 43,758 from 48,300 a year ago. However, the value of trades for the month increased 1% to NZ$2.78 billion from the same period last year. The exchange's shares advanced 0.74%. The New Zealand government's bid to buy back the railways reportedly failed, as Australian-owned Toll New Zealand demanded more than NZ$700 million for the assets. The government offered up to NZ$500 million through state-owned network operator Ontrack. Among other markets in the region, Taiwan's weighted index was up 47.61 points or 56% at 8,531.56, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was gaining 244.05 points or 1.06% to 23,358.39. China's Shanghai Composite Index was up 1.38% at 4,351.71 at 10:46 a.m. local time and Singapore's Straits Times Index was up 16.32 points or 0.58% at 2,927.58. Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was up 14.64 points at 1,294.87 and Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index was adding 10.22 points or 0.39% to 2,649.
March 5, 2008 9:54 PM