Japan Gains, HK Dips

Ivaylo
26 Feb, 2007
New York City

Asian stock markets finished mixed Monday, with Japan advancing on gains in Sony and Softbank, but other regional markets declined. HK plunged, while Australia rose on Rio Tinto which led gainers. South Korea advanced, but Singapore fell. After a long break, Taiwan and China resumed trading and ended in positive territory. Taiwan was boosted by gains in the real estate sector.

[R]9:00AM Asian markets finished mixed Monday with Japan higher and HK lower.[/R]
Asian markets closed mixed on Monday. The Nikkei ended 0.15% higher at 18,215.35. Sony edged 0.8%, after Merrill Lynch upgraded its rating to buy"" from sell and raised its target price. Softbank gained 3.1%. Resona Holdings fell 2% but shares of Nikko Cordial gained 13% on reports U.S.-based Citigroup Inc. is seeking to substantially boost its 4.9% stake in the company. Sanyo Electric gained 3.9%, following a 21% plunge Friday after the Osaka-based electronics maker announced it was being investigated.

Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 0.98% to 20,507.95 and Australian leading share index rose 0.13% to 6,044. In Australia, Rio Tinto led gains among the resources sector after prices for industrial commodities and precious metals rose. Rio Tinto rose 2.1%, while BHP Billiton added 0.5%.

Other benchmarks around the region also gained. South Korea Kospi index closed up 0.15% at 1,470.03 and Taiwan Weighted Price Index closed 1.16% higher at 7,900.20, lifted by gains in construction companies on reports that regional investors are starting to take an active interest in Taiwan real-estate market. China Shanghai Composite Index swung from early losses to jump 1.67%. However, Singapore Straits Times Index fell 0.08% to 3,307.92.

[R]6:30AM European markets were higher on Monday on updates, bid talk.[/R]
European markets were higher on Monday. By mid morning, Frankfurt Xetra Dax added 0.5% to 7,024.35, the CAC 40 in Paris gained 0.9% to 5,766.96 and London FTSE 100 climbed 0.6% to 6,438.3.

Advancers

Dutch television production company Endemol gained 3.1% after French luxury goods group LVMH was talking with Endemol French management about a bid. Telefonica, the Spanish telecoms group which owns 75% of Endemol, is preparing an auction of the maker of Deal Or No Deal and Big Brother within two weeks, and may allow only two rival groups to bid for the company, valued at 2.74 billion euros. Shares in LVMH were up 0.9%, while Telefonica added 0.6%.

Allianz, the German non-life insurer, gained 3.4 % as its strong full-year results last week earned it a series of upgrades. Merrill Lynch raised its rating on the company to buy, while UBS, Bear Stearns and Credit Suisse all lifted their target prices on the stock. Axa, Europe second-biggest insurer after Allianz, gained 2%, riding on the positive momentum built up after it also reported stronger-than-expected results last week.

Decliners

Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk fell 7.5% after the company said it was not seeking regulatory approval to treat bleeding on the brain with NovoSeven after negative results in clinical trials.

Oil and gold

Crude oil for April delivery rose 31 cents to $61.45 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. April Brent crude on London ICE Futures exchange rose 34 cents to $61.22 a barrel. Gold for immediate delivery advanced $5.20, or 0.8%, to $687.75 an ounce, and traded at $686.65 in early trade in London.

Currencies

The [euro was nearly unchanged against the dollar on Monday as German consumer sentiment fell for a second straight month and worries about Iran''s nuclear ambitions kept currencies on edge. The euro bought $1.3163 in morning European trading, nominally up from $1.3162 in New York late Friday. The British pound fell to $1.9628 from $1.9637 and the dollar also moved lower against the Japanese yen, dropping to 120.78 yen from 121.04 yen.

[R]5:30AM Corn and soybean sank, while gold and silver gained on Friday.[/R]
March corn ended 4.25 cents lower at $4.3025 per bushel, while March soybeans settled down 5.50 cents at $7.7825 per bushel. March wheat fell 5.25 cents to $4.8425 per bushel.

April gold gained $3.70 to end at $686.70 a troy ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. March silver settled up 34.5 cents at $14.595 an ounce. April platinum settled up $7.60 at $1,237.60 an ounce, while March palladium settled up $7.40 at $358.10 an ounce. The March copper contract added 7.40 cents to finish at $2.8400 per pound.

The front-month April crude oil settled up 19 cents at $61.14 a barrel after rallying to $61.80 a barrel, the highest level since Dec. 26. March gasoline settled up 0.83 cent at $1.7631 a gallon. March heating oil advanced 2.55 cents at $1.7505 a gallon. March natural gas settled up 2.8 cents at $7.755 a million British thermal units.

On the New York Board of Trade, May Arabica coffee futures closed unchanged at $1.2015 a pound, with July steady at $1.2290. Futures on raw sugar in foreign ports for March declined 0.13 cent to end at 10.97 cents a pound, with May off 0.04 cent at 10.64 cents.