Regional market commenced today's trading with firm footing, as easing tensions over Syria and encouraging Chinese economic data boosted appetite for riskier assets. Early advances in the regional market largely came on diminishing eminent threat of a U.S. military intervention in Syria after the President Barack Obama announced to put the push to strike against Syria on hold
President Barack Obama's said in a live broadcast early on Wednesday in Asia from Washington that he had asked Congress to delay a vote authorizing the use of military force while pursuing a diplomatic solution that would have Syria surrender its chemical weapons. Obama said that he had asked Secretary of State John Kerry to meet with his Russian counterpart.
The threat of a U.S. military intervention in Syria faded somewhat after Russian's proposal to transfer the control of Bashar al-Assad's government's chemical weapons. France said yesterday that it will submit a proposal to UNSC and it's reported that Assad had accepted the proposal to avoid military strike against the government.
Syria said that it would stop making chemical weapons and reveal the location of its stockpiles in an attempt to avoid a military attack on the country.
Data released from China also added to investor optimism that the global economy is on track to make a recovery. Data released on Tuesday showed that Chinese retail sales rose unexpectedly in August, while Chinese industrial production rose more than forecast last month.
China's factory output grew at its fastest pace in 17 months and investment and consumption beat market forecasts in August, increasing confidence among investors that the world's second-largest economy has halted a slide and is building some momentum. Following data this week showing robust exports and benign inflation, yesterday's figures add to the case the economy has bottomed out after slowing in nine of the past 10 quarters.
Factory output jumped 10.4% in August from a year earlier, accelerating from 9.7% in July, to post its biggest increase since March 2012, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Fixed-asset investment, a key driver of growth, grew 20.3% in the first eight months of 2013 from a year earlier, quickening slightly from 20.1% in the January-July period. But growth in property investment slowed to 19.3% in the first eight months from a 20.5% pace in the January-July period, and the rise in revenues from property sales eased to 34.4% from 37.8%. Retail sales, a key gauge of domestic consumption, rose 13.4% in August from a year earlier, up slightly from 13.2% in July to be the fastest expansion since last December.
However, gains on the upside were limited across the region today as investors are looking ahead to next week's meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve. The central bank is widely expected to announce plans to start phasing out its support program for the U.S. economy. The Federal Reserve has said any reduction in stimulus will be tied to a sustained recovery in U.S. employment. The Federal Open Market Committee holds a two-day meeting on Sept. 17-18.
More From This Section
Among Asian bourses, Tokyo market finished mixed after trimming intraday gains late afternoon on Wednesday, 11 September 2013. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed 1.71 points higher at 14425.07, while the Topix index of all first-section shares fell 0.97 point to 1189.25.
Japanese market hovered firmly higher till afternoon after a positive opening today, on the back of overnight gains on Wall Street and weakening of Japanese yen against the US dollar which moved convincingly above the 100-mark. However, the Tokyo stocks closed almost flat as late profit-taking erased early gain after solid gains in the previous two sessions.
The U.S. currency is rising against the Yen after Japan announced that it will pursue stimulus measures to counter the impact of an increase in sales taxes. The dollar was at 100.55 yen on Wednesday, slightly up from 100.40 yen in US trade and also up from 99.96 yen in Tokyo on Tuesday.
In Australia, Australian market rose improving for the fourth straight day in row, sending the broader All Ordinary index higher by 0.44% to finish at 5221.70, a five-year high. Market upward move was driven by shares of mining, financials and industrial blue chip companies.
Consumer confidence in Australia has risen to the highest level since December 2010 as the prospect of a change of government and lower interest rates boosted sentiment among households. The sentiment index for September climbed 4.7% to 110.6, a Westpac-Melbourne Institute survey taken September 2-8 of 1200 adults showed today. A figure above 100 indicates optimists outnumber pessimists. The sub-index tracking assessments of whether now is a good time to buy a dwelling jumped 6.5% to the highest level since August 2009, the report showed.
In New Zealand, NZ shares stocks were mixed in trading today ahead of tomorrow rate review by the central bank. The NZX50 Index was up 7.14 points, or 0.15%, to 4,634.90. Within the index, 21 stocks rose, 19 fell, and 10 were unchanged. Turnover was NZ$155.8 million.
In China, Shanghai market extended gains and finished at fresh three-month high with a soaring trading volume, buoyed by a raft of robust economic data that pointed to an upswing in the world's second largest economy. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.15% to 2,241.27. Full-day turnover totalled 195.42 billion yuan.
Shares of materials and resources went higher in Shanghai, with Aluminum Corp. of China, also known as Chalco, surged 9.9%, driving material stocks to its biggest gain among industry groups after surge in base metal prices in the international market. Yunnan Copper Industry Co, the fourth-biggest producer of the metal, added 6.9% to 10.59 yuan. Hebei Iron & Steel Co. rose 5.9% to 2.16 yuan.
Chinese shipping companies advanced as a benchmark of commodity shipping rates surged to the highest since January 2012. The Baltic Dry Index gained 4.3% yesterday to the highest since January 2012. China Cosco Holdings Co., the biggest shipping company, rose 5% to 3.80 yuan. China Shipping Container, the country's second-largest carrier of sea-cargo boxes, locked 10% upper circuit at 3.30 yuan.
In Hong Kong, HK share market finished lower after erasing early gains, as investors booked some gains following strong recent rally. The Hang Seng Index fell 95.62 points to finish at 22881.03 and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index was down 98.54 points to 10598.90.
In India, Indian benchmark indices were trading lower in afternoon trade on profit-taking after both the benchmark index and the Nifty gained nearly 10% over the previous four sessions. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 163.14 points or 0.82%, up close to 55 points from the day's low and off about 220 points from the day's high.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a massive Rs 2563.60 crore on Tuesday, 10 September 2013, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges. The Sensex had jumped 3.77% on Tuesday after the latest data showed that India's trade deficit, the key driver of the country's large current-account deficit, narrowed to five-month low in August 2013.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar in choppy trade. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 63.42, stronger than its close of 63.84/85 on Tuesday, 10 September 2013.
Elsewhere, Indonesia's JKSE Composite fell 0.55%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.17%, Singapore's Straits Times Index sank 0.69% and Malaysia's KLSE Composite lost 0.05%. South Korea's Kospi index jumped 0.49% while Taiwan's Taiex closed flat.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News