Asian stocks mostly down
Asian stocks closed mostly down on Wednesday ahead of an expected cut in US borrowing costs, but China surged nearly five percent fuelled by optimism over corporate earnings.
The Shanghai bourse rose 4.82 percent buoyed by strong earnings by banks. The rally also came after China slashed a stock trading tax last week, which led to a stunning mainland market rise of nearly 10 percent last Thursday.
Japan edged up 0.32 percent, weighed down by official data showing the country's factory output fell 3.1 percent in March.
TOKYO: Japanese share prices closed down 0.32 percent, pressured by a sharp drop in domestic factory output and by caution ahead of a US interest rate announcement, dealers said.
They said a decision by Japan's central bank to leave its key interest rate on hold at 0.5 percent had little impact.
The benchmark Nikkei-225 index ended 44.38 points lower at 13,849.99. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares declined 3.10 points or 0.23 percent to 1,358.65.
HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices closed down 0.61 percent, dealers said.
The Hang Seng index closed down 158.8 points at 25,755.35. Turnover was 82.61 billion Hong Kong dollars (10.59 billion US).
SHANGHAI: Chinese share prices surged to close up 4.82 percent, dealers said.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B shares, closed up 169.70 points at 3,693.11 on turnover of 156.3 billion yuan (22.3 billion dollars).
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China gained 3.26 percent after reporting that its first-quarter net profit rose 77 percent.
SEOUL: South Korean shares closed 0.8 percent higher, dealers said.
The benchmark KOSPI index ended 13.96 points higher at 1,825.47. Volume reached 240.7 million shares worth 5.17 trillion won (5.16 billion dollars).
SINGAPORE: Singapore share prices closed down 0.77 percent, dealers said.
The blue chip Straits Times Index dropped 24.57 points to 3,147.79 on volume of 1.34 billion shares worth 2.25 billion Singapore dollars (1.65 billion US).
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed 0.3 percent lower, dealers said.
The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) closed down 3.79 at 1,279.86.
BANGKOK: Thai share prices closed 0.14 percent lower, dealers said.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index fell 1.18 points to 832.45 while the blue-chip SET 50 index lost 1.76 points to 599.30.
"The market moved narrowly with thin trading today," said Kavee Chukitkasem, assistant managing director at Kasikorn Securities.
JAKARTA: Indonesian shares closed little changed, dealers said.
The Jakarta Composite Index closed up 0.99 points at 2,304.52.
Ryan Aryadi Suwarno at Dongsuh Kolibindo said investors were waiting to see how the US market would respond to the Fed decision.
MUMBAI: Indian share prices closed down 0.52 percent, dealers said.
The benchmark Mumbai 30-share Sensex index fell 91.15 points to 17,287.31 points.
"In the near term, we believe that the market would become increasingly sensitive to the incoming inflation data. Volatility cannot be ruled out," said Rajiv Shastri at Lotus India mutual fund.
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