Asian stocks fell for the first week in three amid a deteriorating outlook for corporate profits and doubts over whether US stimulus measures will succeed in alleviating the financial crisis.
Nomura Holdings Inc, Japan’s biggest brokerage, fell 17 percent in the week on share-sale plans and as US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said he needed time to work out details of a bank-rescue plan unveiled on Tuesday. Sony Corp, which makes a quarter of its sales in the US, lost 7.8 percent in Tokyo. Electronics maker Pioneer Corp dropped 13 percent in Tokyo after it widened its full-year loss forecast.
“Investors are disappointed with the lack of clarity on the US bank-rescue plan,” said Daphne Roth, Singapore-based head of Asia equity research at ABN Amro Private Bank, which manages about US$27 billion of Asian assets. “We will see more earnings downgrades going into the next few months and that’s going to drag down Asian stocks at least till the end of the first half.”
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index slipped 2 percent to 81.75 in the past five days, following a 3.9 percent increase in the previous two weeks. The gauge is down 8.7 percent this year amid mounting signs the global recession is hurting corporate profits.
Taiwanese shares are expected to be volatile next week as the market moves closer to the nearest resistance level of around 4,700 points, dealers said on Friday.
Many investors would like to remain sidelined, watching closely how Wall Street performs amid caution over the effects of a massive US economic stimulus package, they said.
However, adequate liquidity is likely to lend support to the broader market, with foreign institutional investors continuing to rebuild their positions by targeting the bellwether electronics sector, they added.
The market is expected to pull back after jumping above the 4,700 point mark, while there may be a floor at around 4,300 to 4,400 points, according to dealers.
In the week to Friday, the weighted index rose 119.25 points or 2.67 percent to 4,590.50 after a 5.26 percent increase from a week earlier.
Average daily turnover stood at NT$73.60 billion (US$2.16 billion), compared with NT$59.76 billion a week ago.
President Securities (統一證券) analyst Steven Huang said the bourse has staged a significant comeback after investors returned to the trading floor from the Lunar New Year holiday ending on Feb. 1.
In other regional markets on Friday it was:
KUALA LUMPUR: Up 1.7 percent. The KLCI added 15.24 points to close at 909.84.
JAKARTA: Up 1 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index rose 13.32 points to 1,338.74 in thin volume. MANILA: Down 0.2 percent. The composite index gained 4.44 points to 1,919.66.
MUMBAI: Up 1.78 percent. The SENSEX index rose 168.91 points to 9,634.74.
WELLINGTON: Flat. The NZX-50 rose 0.63 points or 0.02 percent to 2,750.77.
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
RSS