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HONG KONG, Sept 12: Asian stocks closed mostly lower again on Tuesday as investors took a sharp slide in commodity prices as a signal that underlying global demand could be slowing, dealers said.
In Sydney, where weaker resources pushed the main index down 1.03 per cent, some argued that the scale of the sell-off shows hedge funds have decided to take their profits, pointing to possibly further heavy losses ahead.
TOKYO: Japanese share prices fell 0.48 per cent, closing at a one-month low after a major fall in machinery orders dented sentiment for the second straight day, dealers said.
Volume rose to 1.87 billion shares from 1.63 billion shares Monday.
HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices closed 0.75 per cent higher, led by property stocks after a residential site fetched a better-than-expected price at a government land auction, dealers said.
SYDNEY: Australian share prices closed 1.03 per cent lower, tumbling back through the key 5,000 points level on continued falls in commodity prices which were blamed on hedge funds liquidating positions, dealers said.
SINGAPORE: Singapore share prices closed flat as the market consolidated on an absence of fresh buying leads and worries about a slowdown in the US economy, dealers said.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed 0.21 per cent lower as selling by foreign investors of select blue chips more than offset support from local institutions, dealers said.Plantation stocks led the day's decline following recent gains and as commodity markets fell sharply.
JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices closed 0.83 per cent lower, extending losses as a lack of fresh local leads and a lackluster performance in the regional markets weighed on sentiment, dealers said.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand share prices closed 0.32 per cent lowery, following the generally weaker trend in major regional markets, dealers said.
MUMBAI: Indian share prices bounced back 0.95 per cent as investor confidence improved on fresh local and foreign fund buying, dealers said.—AFP
