HONG KONG, Dec 20: Asian stocks closed mostly flat on Tuesday with buying capped by overnight falls on Wall Street but broader sentiment remained strong with Tokyo defying the regional trend and again finishing sharply higher, dealers said.
They said volumes were thin, as expected in the lead-up to Christmas, while year-end squaring off had also left its mark on trade.
TOKYO: Share prices rose 1.62 per cent as investors welcomed a weaker yen and bought up domestic demand linked stocks after the government forecast an end to deflation next year.
Recovering for a second day from last week’s losses, Nikkei-225 index added 249.78 points to 15,641.26, building on Monday’s 1.44 per cent gain.
The Nikkei index has soared by more than 40 per cent from this point last year on hopes that Japan’s economic recovery is for real this time.
Property developers were up sharply. Mitsubishi Estate rose 180 yen to 2,190 and Mitsui Fudosan added 160 yen to 2,310.
HONG KONG: Share prices closed flat in cautious trade following Wall Street’s falls last night.
Property stocks traded mixed, with Sun Hung Kai Properties gaining 0.25 at 75.80, Cheung Kong down 0.25 at 80.95, Henderson Land down 0.15 at 36.80, Wharf Holdings up 0.35 at 27.35 and Sino Land flat at 9.50.
SYDNEY: Share prices rose 0.36 per cent to a record high, buoyed by advances in leading resources stocks and speculation about merger and acquisition activity.
The benchmark S and P/ASX 200 index closed up 16.8 points at 4,672.2, surpassing the previous record high of 4,671.7, set on September 29.
The broader All Ordinaries Index added 15.9 points to 4,616.7, not quite managing to break its record close of 4,617.4 also reached on September 29.
SINGAPORE: Share prices remained in the doldrums, closing flat after lacklustre trading but with notable selling of semiconductor stocks.
Chartered Semiconductor fell 0.06 to 1.16, UTAC declined 0.025 to 0.680 and STATS ChipPAC gave up 0.03 to 1.05.
KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed flat with sentiment weighed down over fears of further interest rate hikes and declines overnight on Wall Street.
Among blue chips, Tenaga Nasional closed up 0.10 ringgit at 9.85 and Telekom Malaysia was up 0.10 at 9.55, while Malayan Banking was flat at 11.40.
JAKARTA: Share prices closed little changed on volatile trade amid concerns that most stocks were already fairly priced.
Bank Rakyat Indonesia was up 25 at 3,050 rupiah while rival Bank Mandiri was down 20 at 1,560.
WELLINGTON: Share prices closed marginally higher after last minute gains erased early losses.
The NZSX-50 gross index rose 2.29 points or 0.07 per cent to 3,319.32 on turnover of 116 million dollars (79.7 million US).
Contact Energy rose seven cents to 6.37 dollars. Hamilton, Hindin, Greene partner Grant Williamson said this was mainly due to bargain hunters chasing the stock.
MUMBAI: Share prices closed 0.51 per cent lower as investors locked-in profits after sharp early gains that saw the benchmark index touch a new intraday record high.
The Sensex fell 48.03 points to 9,346.24 on volumes of 40.53 billion rupees (885 million dollars).
Prices rose in early trade, but later fell as investors booked profits largely in software shares and some other blue chips, said Hemen Kapadia, partner at investment advisory firm, Morpheus Inc.—AFP
Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.