Asian markets seen mixed this week
Asian markets seen mixed this week
Agence France-Presse, Jakarta
Indonesia's stock market, which fell 1.4 percent in the past week, is likely to strengthen in this week due to the initial public offering (IPO) of Bank Rakyat Indonesia, an analyst said on Friday.
"For next week, a rising trend is quite visible because investors are gearing up for the BRI's IPO," Megakarya Securities analyst Hendra Bujang told AFP.
Bujang said he expected the index to rise after Nov. 5, the final day of sales of the BRI shares. State officials say the IPO is expected to raise some US$490 million.
The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite index ended last week down 9.021 points at 625.546. Average daily volume was 951.08 billion shares valued at Rp 584.99 billion compared with 1.73 billion shares valued at Rp 897.57 billion the previous week.
In Singapore, signs that the economy is on the road to recovery should boost the stock market, analysts said. The Straits Times Index closed at 1,723.71 on Friday, down 9.25 points or 0.53 percent from the previous week.
Fears a downgrade by U.S. stock broker Morgan Stanley of Singapore stocks would weigh down trading during the week appeared unfounded as the weekly decline was marginal.
In the past week, average daily volume was 1.36 million shares worth S$993.35 million, down from 1.91 million shares valued at S$1.23 billion the previous week.
Meanwhile, Japanese stocks are expected to continue to find buying support in this holiday-shortened week as investors are likely to chase companies enjoying strong earnings.
"Foreign investors appear to be receding slightly, but buying sentiment in general has not withered yet in Tokyo," said Kenichi Azuma, a broker at Cosmo Securities.
The government announced salaried household spending and consumer prices fell more than expected last month, while the jobless rate remained at 5.1 percent.
Investors were calmly watching campaigning for the Nov. 9 general elections, the first chance for voters to pass judgment directly on Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi since he took office in 2001.
Financial markets in Tokyo will be closed on Monday for a national holiday.
In the week just ended, the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Nikkei 225 index gained 223.89 points or 2.17 percent to end at 10,559.59, while the Topix index of all first-section shares rose 18.37 points or 1.79 percent to 1,043.36.
In Hong Kong, the share prices are likely to range trade as the market consolidates further to build momentum for the next rally.
The key Hang Seng index rose 453.73 points or 3.87 percent to close the week at 12,190.10 on Friday.
Kenny Tang, associate director at Tung Tai Securities, said the market would trade 11,900-12,400 points next week.
In Bangkok, the Thai stock market is expected to post strong gains this week, boosted by healthy third-quarter earnings in non-bank sectors.
The index would likely test the 650-point mark and see strong support at 625, dealers said.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index soared 30.20 points or 4.96 percent over the past week to close on Friday at 639.45 points.
More upside is expected on Malaysia's stock market, which rose 1.6 percent this week, following a smooth political transition after Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was installed as premier Friday, analysts said.
Abdullah on Friday succeeded Mahathir Mohamad, Asia's longest- serving leader who retired after 22 years in power.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange composite index gained 12.69 points during the week to close Friday at a new-year high of 817.12. Average daily trading volume surged to one billion shares worth 1.79 billion ringgit, from 726 million units valued at 1.35 billion ringgit the previous week.