Asia Roundup: Investors shrug off weak US lead

Published: 2009/10/27


HONG KONG: Asian markets were mostly higher yesterday as optimism about the upcoming third quarter reporting season helped investors brush off a weak lead from Wall Street at the end of last week.

Hong Kong was closed for a public holiday.

TOKYO: Up 0.77 per cent. The Nikkei-225 rose 79.63 points to 10,362.62.

"Earnings will likely provide the market with more trading cues," Tsuyoshi Segawa, equity strategist at Mizuho Securities, told Dow Jones Newswires.

SYDNEY: Down 0.60 per cent. The SP/ASX200 fell 29.1 points to 4,830.3.

IG Markets research analyst Ben Potter said the Australian market held up well given the weak lead from the US.

SHANGHAI: Flat. The composite index was up 1.72 points or 0.06 per cent to 3,109.57.

"Corporate earnings will be the main focus this week - the earnings reports that have already been released look quite good and this is keeping sentiment buoyant," Huatai Securities analyst Chen Huiqin said.

SEOUL: Up 1.03 per cent. The Kospi ended up 16.94 points at 1,657.11.

"Local shares have moved sideways below the 1,700-mark for about a month because investors feared that earlier stock rallies outpaced the economic recovery," said Park Seung-Jin, an analyst at Samsung Securities.

TAIPEI: Up 0.25 per cent. The weighted index rose 19.12 points to 7,668.40.

"Many stocks have appeared expensive after recent significant gains. It was nothing unusual that any upside led to immediate profit-taking," Capital Securities analyst Chen Yu-yu said.

BANGKOK: Up 0.43 per cent. The composite index rose 3.07 points to close at 711.83, and the blue-chip index was up 2.24 points to 505.64

Therdsak Thaweetheeratham, an analyst from Asia Plus Securities, said the market moved narrowly because investors were cautious due to the fall in oil prices and because of growing tensions in domestic politics.

JAKARTA: Flat. The composite index edged down 0.24 points or 0.01 per cent to 2,467.71.

"The market consolidated after Friday's 1.4 per cent gain," a trader told Dow Jones Newswires.

MANILA: Up 0.29 per cent. The composite index added 8.54 points to 2,941.53 while the all-share index gained 4.51 points or 0.24 per cent to 1,852.54.

Dealers said further consolidation was expected in the near term.

MUMBAI: Down 0.42 per cent. The Sensex fell 70.31 points to 16,740.5. - AFP