Asia report: Markets mixed as recovery stalls
Markets in Asia finished mixed on Wednesday, with a number of indices refusing to participate in the global recovery and instead finishing in the red.
AUD/USD
$0.6423
21:40 18/04/24
GBP/NZD
NZD2.1068
21:39 18/04/24
Hang Seng
16,385.87
10:20 18/04/24
Nikkei 225
38,079.70
09:44 18/04/24
USD/JPY
¥154.5910
21:40 18/04/24
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was up 0.16% at 21,645.37, as the yen strengthened 0.23% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 109.31.
Carmakers and technology plays were largely higher in Tokyo, with SoftBank Group up 3.81%, Sony adding 1.52% and Toyota ahead 1.18%.
On the downside were industrial name Fanuc Manufacturing and Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing, which were down 2% and 1.41% respectively.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 1.81% to 3,309.58, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite slipped 0.68% to 1,714.39.
South Korea’s Kospi was off 2.31% at 2,396.56, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong lost 0.89% to 30,323.20.
Technology giant Samsung Electronics dragged on the index in Seoul, losing 3.42%, while its rival chipmaker SK Hynix was up 1.28% by end-of-play.
Oil prices were still falling, with Brent crude last down 0.35% at $66.63 and West Texas Intermediate off 0.72% at $62.94.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.75% to end the day at 5,876.80, led by gains in the energy and materials subindices.
Looking at the major miners, BHP and Rio Tinto were up 1.81% and 3.82% respectively, while in the energy sector, Beach Energy surged 4.82% and Santos was ahead 1.62%.
Gold producers were the biggest losers in Sydney, with the sector falling 1.96%.
Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 was down 0.6% at 8,194.73, as investors had their first chance to react to Monday’s poor performance on Wall Street.
Wellington’s bourse was closed on Tuesday for the national Waitangi Day holiday.
Financials led the index lower, with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group falling 3.3% and Westpac Banking Corporation off 2.9%, while airport operator AIAL also suffered, falling 2.1%.
Both of the down under dollars were weaker against the greenback, with the Aussie last off 0.55% at AUD 1.2718 and the Kiwi retreating 0.44% to NZD 1.3679.