Japan Down, HK Up

Ivaylo
30 Aug, 2006
New York City

Asian markets closed mixed Wednesday as Japanese stocks saw declines accelerate across the board, while Hong Kong and Taiwan got a boost from indications the Federal Reserve Board may stop from more rate hikes in the near term. South Korean stocks closed lower as foreigners sold large capitalized stocks in favor of smaller issues. Shares in China closed marginally higher as property companies advanced after the yuan posted another post-revaluation high.

[R]7:30AM Japan falls on media report, HK gains on Fed’s decision.[/R]
Asian markets were mixed on Wednesday. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 Average ended the day 0.12% lower to 15,872.02. Shares in Rakuten sank by their daily limit of 8.5% on rumors a weekly magazine intended to publish a damaging report about the company. Internet and cellular provider Softbank Corp. plunged 3.33%. Toshiba rising 2.53%, and Canon Inc up 2.15% led the advancing blue-chips in Tokyo.

Hong Kong''s Hang Seng Index closed up 1.18% to 17,284.71. Shares were led higher by rate-sensitive property stocks on expectations that U.S. rate rise cycle will come to an end soon. Developer Sun Hung Kai Properties gained 1.6%, and Cheung Kong Holdings edged up 1%. Henderson Land surged 3.9%.

The Shanghai Composite Index notched up 0.3% as the yuan hit its highest level against the dollar since being revalued last July. Australia''s S&P/ASX 200 was flat, edging down 0.01%. Beverage company Foster''s Group shed 0.64% after denying rumors it had been approached about a takeover. In South Korea, the Kospi index dropped 0.24%. Taiwan''s Weighted index gained 1.65%, with PC-maker Acer adding 7% after Merrill Lynch upgraded it to buy from neutral.

[R]6:30AM European markets were higher lifted by tech and transport shares.[/R]
European markets were higher by mid-morning on Wednesday. London FTSE 100 rose 0.4% to 5,910.2, while Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax added 0.4% to 5,867.3. In Paris, the CAC 40 advanced 0.5% to 5,184.13. Transport stocks were in demand, led by Moller-Maersk, the Danish container shipping group, which reported upbeat full-year guidance in the previous session. Its shares gained 4%.

EADS, continued to benefit from speculation about Russian stakebuilding, as state bank Vneshtorgbank was reported by the Russian press on Tuesday to have accumulated a 5% stake in EADS. Also in the transport sector, Deutsche Post, the German logistics and delivery group, advanced 1.8%, while Dutch group TNT gained 1.7%.

Crude oil for October delivery gained 19 cents to $69.90 a barrel, supported by an expected decline in U.S. crude and gasoline stocks in statistics due later on Wednesday and Iran''s determination to press ahead with its nuclear program.

Gold was trading around $614.20 an ounce, up a little from late New York trade and off a five-week low of $606.80 struck earlier on Tuesday. The euro was steady against the U.S. dollar in early European trading Wednesday, holding onto gains made as the chances of higher U.S. interest rates appeared to wither. The euro bought $1.2830, compared with $1.2831 in New York late Tuesday. The British pound slipped slightly to $1.8986 from $1.8989 on Tuesday, while the dollar was at 116.95 Japanese yen, up from 116.61 yen.

[R]5:00AM Gold retreats as weakness in crude oil continues.[/R]
December gold shed $4.80 to $619.10 a troy ounce on the NYME. September silver settled up 12.5 cents to $12.15 an ounce. October platinum dropped 20 cents to $1,227.50 an ounce, while September palladium slipped $4.70 to $336.75 an ounce. Copper fell amid a general sell-off in commodities to a more than one-week low. Talks of a possible settlement of the 23-day strike at Chile''s Escondida mine also weighed on the market. Most-active December copper settled down 6.65 cents at $3.3840 per pound.

Crude oil fell to its lowest close in two months, dropping below $70 a barrel Tuesday as Tropical Storm Ernesto continued its path away from Gulf of Mexico oil platforms and as dropping U.S. consumer confidence stoked concerns that demand might slacken. The front-month October light, sweet crude contract on the NYME declined 90 cents at $69.71 a barrel. September gasoline rose 0.61 cent to $1.7892 a gallon and September heating oil shed 2.27 cents to 1.9432 a gallon. September natural gas rose 34.4 cents to finish at $6.816 a million British thermal units. On the New York Board of Trade, Arabica coffee futures for September ended up 0.10 cent at $1.0330 a pound. Futures on raw sugar in foreign ports for October ended down 0.25 cent at 11.88 cents a pound.