HONG KONG, Oct 7: Asian stocks closed narrowly mixed on Friday with anxious investors taking to the sidelines after two days of steep falls, prompted by the prospect of rising US interest rates.
Dealers said market players will look to the United States overnight and the release of non farm payrolls and unemployment data for September and weaker than expected figures could trigger another round of heavy selling.
Tokyo was among the worse performers on the day, falling 0.99 per cent while Bangkok, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong all registered modest losses.
TOKYO: Share prices limped to the end of a tough week, with the main Nikkei index extending losses on worries about the US economic outlook ahead of a key jobs report.
The Nikkei-225 index lost 131.77 points or 0.99 per cent to 13,227.74 as 2.6 billion shares changed hands ahead of a three-day holiday weekend.
The market steadied somewhat Friday, encouraging the view that after hitting successive four-year highs on optimism that the Japanese economy is really on the mend, stocks will pick up again once this correction runs its course.
HONG KONG: Share prices closed flat as modest gains posted in the morning session due to bargain-hunting were eroded in late trade as interest rate worries again came to the fore.
The Hang Seng Index closed up 8.49 points at 14,847.79. Turnover was 18.53 billion Hong Kong dollars (2.4 billion US).
SYDNEY: Share prices closed 0.15 per cent lower, slipping further even as the selling pressure after a week in which the market suffered its biggest two-day loss since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.
The S and P/ASX 200 index lost 6.7 points at 4,440.6. Volume was 1.15 billion shares worth 4.07 billion dollars (3.1 billion US).
SINGAPORE: Share prices closed 0.69 per cent higher on expectations preliminary third quarter economic growth figures to be released next week would be strong.
The Straits Times Index rose 15.77 points to 2,305.24. Volume totalled 1.2 billion shares worth 999 million Singapore dollars (591 million US).
KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed 0.11 per cent lower in range bound trade with sentiment weighed down by overnight declines in Wall Street and foreign fund selling in the local market.
The composite index shed 1.04 points to 925.21 and volume traded was 390.45 million shares worth 613.67 million ringgit (162.80 million dollars).
JAKARTA: Share prices closed 0.16 per cent lower in directionless trade Friday amid fears that local interest rates could rise further.
The composite index ended down 1.724 points at 1,094.652 on volume of 780.50 million shares worth 958.72 billion rupiah (95.6 million dollars).
WELLINGTON: Share prices closed 0.17 per cent lower on large volumes due to concerns about weakness in world markets and the local economic outlook.
Number three stock Fletcher Building partly offset losses in other stocks, rising 20 cents to 8.18 dollars. Fletcher was helped by positive analyst briefings which painted a rosy picture of the company, Williamson said.
MUMBAI: Share prices followed most regional markets and recorded modest falls with investors waiting for further leads on which direction local equities should take, dealers said.
The Sensex closed down 37.14 points or 0.44 per cent at 8.491.56.—AFP
