Asian Shares End Mixed Amid Tech Sell-Off Ahead Of Easter Break

29th Mar 2018 09:25

CANBERA (Alliance News) - Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Thursday as weak commodity prices and a continued sell-off in technology shares kept investors nervous ahead of Easter holidays.

Chinese stocks ended higher as property developers surged after a recent correction. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index rallied 38.24 points or 1.2% to close at 3,160.53, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed up 0.2% at 30,093.38.

Japanese shares rose as the yen weakened amid easing tensions over North Korea's nuclear program and a report showed Japanese retail shares ticked higher in February, suggesting growing consumer confidence.

The Nikkei average rose 127.77 points or 0.6% to 21,159.08 while the broader Topix index closed 0.26% higher at 1,704.

Fast Retailing, Yaskawa Electric, Trend Micro, Asahi Glass and Nichirei Corp jumped 3% to 4%. Panasonic tumbled 4% and Sony declined 1.2% despite a weaker yen. Tech stocks such as Advantest and Tokyo Electron lost 1% to 2%.

Softbank fell 1.5% on a Bloomberg report that it is nearing an agreement to acquire stake in Swiss Re. Takeda Pharmaceutical slumped 7.5% after the company said that it is at a preliminary and exploratory stage regarding a possible bid for UK-based biopharmaceutical company Shire PLC.

Australian shares closed lower despite banks seeing some rebound from recent losses. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 30.10 points or 0.5% to 5,759.40 on the final session before the Easter break while the broader All Ordinaries index ended down 30.30 points or 0.5% at 5,868.90.

Telco Telstra fell 1.3% to extend recent losses while miners BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group dropped between 0.9% and 1.6%.

Santos, Oil Search and Origin Energy lost 1% to 2% after crude oil prices declined more than 1% overnight.

Banks Commonwealth, NAB and Westpac ended up between 0.1% and 0.6% ahead of the RBA's monetary policy meeting due next week.

Seoul stocks rose as geopolitical tensions on the Korean Peninsula ebbed ahead of the planned inter-Korean and US-North summit. The benchmark Kospi climbed 17 points or 0.7% to 2,436.37, led by pharmaceutical shares.

Automakers plunged, with Hyundai Motor losing 5.3% and Kia Motors declining 3.5%. Hyundai Motor Group said that it will streamline its overall governance structure through business spinoffs and mergers between related businesses.

New Zealand shares fell sharply on the last trading day of the quarter, with diary product firms A2 Milk and Synlait Milk and construction firm Fletcher Building pacing the decliners. Sky Network Television shares rallied 2.7% after falling 8% the previous day. The benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index ended down 69.01 points or 0.8% at 8,319.07.

The total number of building consents issued in New Zealand jumped a seasonally adjusted 5.7% sequentially in February, Statistics New Zealand said. That follows the downwardly revised flat reading in January.

US stocks ended a choppy session slightly lower overnight after a sharp fall in Amazon shares and continued declines in technology stocks spurred by calls for tighter regulation.

Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a Commerce Department report showing stronger than previously estimated economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2017 and another report showing a bigger than expected rebound in pending home sales in February.

While the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.9%, the Dow edged down marginally and the S&P 500 dropped 0.3%.

Indian markets were closed for a public holiday. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index was down 0.4% and the Taiwan Weighted eased 0.2%, while Malaysian shares were marginally higher and Singapore's Straits Times index was up 1.4%.

---

Related Shares:

Shire