Asian stocks rose this week, driving the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index up the most since December, as US economic reports eased concern that deficits in Europe will slow a global recovery, and brokerages boosted investment ratings.
Samsung Electronics Co, Asia’s biggest semiconductor maker, gained 3.1 percent in Seoul this week on the outlook for chip demand. Nissan Motor Co jumped 6.2 percent in Tokyo after Citigroup Inc reiterated its “buy” rating on the carmaker. CNOOC Ltd (中國海洋石油), China’s largest offshore oil producer, rose 4.7 percent in Hong Kong as crude oil exceeded US$75 a barrel and analysts recommended the stock. Nintendo Co soared 16 percent in Osaka, Japan, after introducing a new video-game player.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index rose 3.3 percent this week, the most since the period ended Dec. 4. It has lost 3.6 percent this year on concern Greece and other European countries will struggle to curb their budget deficits and repay debt.
“There was a lot of pessimism about what’s happening in Europe that took the market down,” said Tim Leung, who helps manage about US$1.5 billion at IG Investment Ltd in Hong Kong. “It’s rebounding from that pessimism.”
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 3 percent this week, South Korea’s KOSPI Index climbed 2.2 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 2.1 percent, and Taiwan’s TAIEX increased 2.7 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite Index declined 2.2 percent in a two-day week shortened by holidays.
Taiwanese share prices closed down 0.30 percent on Friday, with the market in consolidation mode. Traders said the shrinking volume means the market is likely to keep moving within a narrow range in the early part of next week.
The TAIEX fell 22.67 points to 7,493.11, after moving between 7,459.93 and 7,538.55 on Friday.
“The turnover was just too low to drive the market higher,” said Benson Huang, an analyst at Taiwan International Securities Corp (金鼎證券), adding that the broader market index faced strong resistance at around 7,530.
“The index might need to build a solid base at around 7,400 in the next three to four days before moving higher again,” Huang said.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest maker of custom chips, increased 3.6 percent to NT62.7 in Taipei.
Global sales in the chip industry will increase almost 30 percent this year, compared with an April forecast of 22 percent, TSMC chairman and CEO Morris Chang (張忠謀) said this week.
Other markets on Friday:
Kuala Lumpur closed up 1.01 percent, or 13.22 points, from Thursday at 1,317.69.
Manila rose 0.67 percent, or 21.96 points, from Thursday to close at 3,335.48.
Wellington was flat, closing 1.78 points higher from Thursday at 3,047.50.
Mumbai fell 0.26 percent, or 45.87 points, from Thursday to 17.570.82.
Taiwan aims to open 18 representative offices and seven Taiwan Tourism Information Centers worldwide by next year to attract international visitors, the Tourism Administration said on Saturday. The agency has so far opened three representative offices abroad this year and would open two more before the end of the year, it said. It has also already opened information centers in Jakarta, Mumbai and Paris, and is to open one in Vancouver next month and in Manila in December, it said. Next year, it would also open offices in Amsterdam, Dubai and Sydney, it added. While the Cabinet did not mention international tourists in its
EYES AT SEA: Many marine enthusiasts have expressed interest in volunteering for coastal patrols, which would help identify stowaways and illegal fishing, the CGA said Six thousand coastal patrol volunteers are to be recruited for 159 inspection offices to enhance the nation’s response to “gray zone” conflicts, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) sources said yesterday. Volunteer teams would be established to increase the resilience of coastal defense systems in the wake of two unlawful entries attempted by Chinese over the past three months, Ocean Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. A former Chinese navy captain drove a motorboat into the Tamsui River (淡水河) in Taipei on the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival in June, while another Chinese man sailed in a rubber boat into the Houkeng
NEXT LEVEL: The defense ministry confirmed that a video released last month featured personnel piloting new FPV drone systems being developed by the Armaments Bureau Taipei and Washington are pushing for their drone companies to work together to establish a China-free supply chain, the Financial Times reported on Friday. A delegation of high-level executives and US government officials were yesterday to arrive in Taipei to discuss with their Taiwanese counterparts collaboration on drone technology procurement and development, the report said. The executives represent 26 US manufacturers of drone and counter-drone systems, while the officials are from the US Department of Commerce and the US Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit, along with Dev Shenoy, principal director for microelectronics in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense
‘ANONYMOUS 64’: A national security official said that it is an attempt by China to increase domestic anti-Taiwanese sentiment and inflame cross-strait tensions The Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM) yesterday denied accusations by China that it had undermined regional security by carrying out cyberattacks against targets in China, adding instead that Beijing was responsible for raising tensions and undermining regional peace. The Chinese Ministry of State Security on WeChat accused a hacker group called “Anonymous 64” of targeting China, Hong Kong and Macau starting earlier this year through frequent cyberattacks. The group carried out cyberattacks to seize control of Web sites, outdoor electronic billboards and video-on-demand platforms in China, Hong Kong and Macau, it said, adding the hackers’