Asian markets end mixed, many look for direction
Asian markets end mixed, many look for direction
HONG KONG (Reuter): Asian markets ended mixed in generally
quiet trade yesterday, with Hong Kong index remaining above the
10,000-point level but Tokyo and Singapore taking a step back as
investors looked for direction.
In Hong Kong, stocks ended slightly stronger as late overseas
institutional buying of banks and property firms overrode profit-
taking.
The Hang Seng Index gained 23.65 points or 0.24 percent to
10,032.93, shrugging off a 63-point drop earlier in the day.
"Foreign money is flowing into the market although local
fundamentals have not changed," said Patrick Chia, research
manager at Cheerful Securities.
In Taipei, major institutional investors guided share prices
higher by targeting the heavily weighted electronics and
financial sectors.
The index shook off a mid-morning malaise, recovering from an
intra-day low of 5,028.96 to finish 42.02 points or 0.83 percent
higher at 5,081.00.
"Institutional investors know the market reacts to the
movements of these two sectors, so some of them made an effort to
boost them," said Allen Huang of National Securities.
Share prices also ended higher in Jakarta, Wellington and
Manila.
Weaker
Tokyo shares ended weaker but recovered from earlier lows as
public funds stepped in to buy across several sectors, including
steel and pulp and paper. The 225-share Nikkei average fell 99.84
points or 0.55 percent to 17,916.60.
"Investors have no idea on which shares to focus and are now
looking for shares which can lead the overall market," said
Toshiyuki Nishiguchi, general manager at Daiwa Securities.
Bank Negara's tightening of credit on car and house loans
drove down Malaysian share prices across the board, with motor
and property stocks the hardest hit.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Composite Index dropped 11.51
points or 1.2 percent to 945.86.
Cut-loss selling depressed Singapore shares and brokers said
more losses were on the horizon due to the lack of incentives and
absence of many foreign funds.
The 30-share Straits Times Industrials Index lost 12.42 points
or 0.59 percent to 2,099.38 in cautious trade.
Thai stocks opened lower and stayed there as selling in the
finance sector flowed into other areas, brokers said. The SET
index lost 7.13 points or 0.54 percent to 1,309.91.
"There was a lot of selling in the finance sector on
expectation of weak third quarter results. That ruined the whole
market sentiment," said one broker at a foreign house.
The Sydney, Seoul and Bombay bourses had narrow losses.