Asia Pacific shares ended slightly higher in quiet trading on Thursday, 26 November 2015, due to a lack of trading cues amid the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.4%.
Equities were whipsawed this week as commodity prices slumped and amid concern about escalating tension between Russia and Turkey after the downing of a warplane.
The focus shifts to the ECB meeting and the release of key U.S. indicators next week, which could affect the Fed's decision at the Dec. 15-16 meeting. Speculation is mounting of further stimulus by the European Central Bank. Slew of latest positive US economic data increases bets the Federal Reserve will end a seven-year period of near-zero interest rates when it meets next month
Among Asian bourses
Banks carries Australia market in the black
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The Australian share market managed to close higher for the first time in three consecutive sessions, with gains in the banks and financial stocks helped to offset losses in resources stocks. At the close, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index ended 17 points, or 0.33%, higher at 5210.70 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index rose 14.50 points, or 0.28%, to 5259.70 points. Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Australia Stock Exchange by 509 to 499 and 145 ended unchanged.
Shares of banks and financials were biggest winners in the ASX industry groups, with top four lenders being major gainers. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group rose 0.4% to A$27.56, National Australia Bank 0.4% to A$29.69, Commonwealth Bank of Australia 1.5% to A$80.22 and Westpac 1.2% to A$32.09. Bank of Queensland was down 2.5% to A$13.90, after its chief executive said at its annual general meeting tough competition in the sector could put a lid on the benefits flowing from recent home loan rate hikes.
Shares of materials and energy companies again hit by falls in commodity prices, with BHP Billiton down 3.7% to A$18.94 and Rio Tinto down 1.4% to A$46.49. Among energy stocks, Woodside Petroleum lost 0.2% to A$29.61, Santos 3.4% to A$4.03, and Origin Energy 1.3% to A$5.54.
Shares in Monash IVF have soared 18.3% to A$1.68 after the company delivered news that its first half profit would jump by a quarter.
Slater and Gordon shares has lost 51.4% to A$0.94 after the UK government announced proposals that would change the rights of people injured in road accidents in the United Kingdom.
Nikkei hits new 3-months high
The Japanese share market ended slight higher, on the back of yen softness against greenback and hopes for policy measures at home. But, topside was limited due to a lack of trading cues amid the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. The day's notable gainers comprised Construction, Information & Communication, Financial Business, Transportation Equipment, and Nonferrous Metals issues, while Pulp & Paper, Textiles & Apparels, and Oil & Coal Products issues were among major losers. The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange ended up 49%, or 96.83 points, to hit new 3-months high 19944.41, while the wider Topix index of all first-section shares 0.48%, or 7.65 points, to 1602.32.
Large-cap exporters, such as automakers and technology companies, drew buying after many of them suffered losses the previous day. Toyota Motor Corp rose 1.1%, Nissan Motor Co. gained 1.4%, and Honda Motor Co. added 1.5%.
Renesas Electronics soared 6%, backed by reports that it has developed semiconductors with artificial intelligence functions for use in industrial machinery.
Hodogaya Chemical Co. surged 28% and Ulvac Inc. jumped 6.5% after reports that Apple Inc. will switch to organic light-emitting diode screens for its iPhones from 2018. Both Japanese firms supply materials and technology for the production of the screens. Shares of Japan Display (6740.TO) declined 7.5% after reports raised concerns that the company may face tough competition against South Korean firms as smartphone maker start adopting organic light-emitting diode panels. Minebea Co., which supplies backlights for LCD screens, dropped 7.5%.
China stocks fall lead by technology companies
The Mainland China stock market ended down, as investors' opted withdrawing part-profit after the benchmark indices hit two-week high yesterday, with shares of technology companies leading selloff. The Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.34%, or 12.38 points, to close at 3635.55 points. The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, dropped 0.77%, or 17.93 points, to close at 2325.69. The ChiNext Index, which tracks China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, was down 2.22%, or 64.37 points, to close at 2833.20.
Shares of technology companies dropped on profit booking following sharp recent rally, with East Money Information Co. down 5.4%, while Yonyou Network Technology Co. slid 3.8%.
Shares of materials companies were also higher. Aluminum Corp. of China jumped 1.9% after it said it plans to sell a stake in a unit in Shanxi province for at least 2.4 billion yuan . Jiangxi Copper gained 2.6%, while Chengdu Huaze Cobalt & Nickel Material Co. jumped by the 10% daily limit.
Hong Kong market ends softer
The Hong Kong stock market ended marginally down after erasing entire intraday gains during late afternoon trade, due to a lack of trading cues amid the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. The benchmark Hang Seng Index declined 9.06 points, or 0.04%, to 22488.94 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, benchmark measure of performance of mainland China enterprises, has lost 19.48 points, or 0.19%, to 10108.39 points. Turnover reduced slightly to HK$61.4 billion from HK$64.8 billion on Wednesday.
Shares of Kunlun Energy (00135) and PetroChina (00857) soared 3% and 0.4% to HK$6.94 and HK$5.75 after PetroChina agreed to sell Kunlun Gas to Kunlun Energy.
Automakers were down, with losses were led by BYD (01211), down 6% to HK$41.55, after Morgan Stanley's target price downgrade from HK$60 to HK$45. Other Chinese auto makers were also pressured, with Dongfeng Motor (00489) and BAIC (01958) down 1.8% and 1.5% to HK$10.72 and HK$7.86.
Sensex hits 26,000 level
Index heavyweights ITC, Reliance Industries (RIL) and Infosys led the upmove for key benchmark indices. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 209.33 points, or 0.81%, at 25,985.07, while the Nifty rose 52.20 points, or 0.67%, at 7,883.80, as per the provisional closing data. A bout of volatility was witnessed towards the fag end of the trading session as the Sensex fell below the psychological 26,000 mark soon after surpassing that level. Volatility at the fag end of the trading session materialized as the near month November 2015 contracts expired in the futures & options (F&O) segment.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 2.27% to Rs 990 after the company said it has repaid the third installment of redemption proceeds on the outstanding debentures.
Tata Motors advanced 5.21% after the company's British luxury car unit Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) announced that it will spend 450 million to double the size of its engine manufacturing centre (EMC) in the UK.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 2.2% after the company announced the launch of the automatic transmission variant in its XUV500 sports utility vehicle (SUV).
Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL) tumbled 7.96% after the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) put up the warning letter issued to the company dated 5 November 2015 on its web site.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region: Taiwan's Taiex index rose 1.2% to 8484.90. South Korea's KOPSI grew 1.1% to 2030.68. Malaysia's KLCI fell 0.1% to 1683.09. Singapore's Straits Times index fell 0.24% at 2884.69. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index rose 0.25% to 4597.06. New Zealand's NZX50 added 0.31% to 6087.90.
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