All the Asian equity indices, barring Japanese Nikkei, ended the Thursday’s trade in the green terrain. The sentiment remained up-beat after minutes of the September 16-17 FOMC meeting offered a dovish outlook for U.S. monetary policy, with some Fed officials expressing concerns about global economic weakness and the impact of a stronger U.S. dollar. Meanwhile, Chinese Shanghai edged higher by over quarter a percent to end near a 20-month high, as investors looked forward to trade and inflation data due next week. Moreover, investor sentiment got a boost after Premier Li Keqiang said the government would launch some key projects in areas such as water conservation and environmental protection this year to support economic growth.
However, Japanese Nikkei ended lower, erasing earlier gains as the yen hit a three-week high against the dollar. On the economic front, Japanese core machinery orders climbed 4.7 percent in August from the previous month, government data showed, exceeding forecasts for an increase of 0.5 percent. The leading gauge of capital spending rose for the third straight month, helping ease concerns the economy is losing traction.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 2,389.37 | 6.58 | 0.28 |
Hang Seng | 23,534.53 | 271.20 | 1.17 |
Jakarta Composite | 4,993.88 | 35.36 | 0.71 |
KLSE Composite | 1,829.73 | 5.41 | 0.30 |
Nikkei 225 | 15,478.93 | -117.05 | -0.75 |
Straits Times | 3,259.25 | 32.54 | 1.01 |
KOSPI Composite | -- | -- | -- |
Taiwan Weighted | 8,966.44 | 11.26 | 0.13 |