The Asian markets made mostly a positive close on Thursday, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. Chinese stocks fell on worries a spate of IPO’s next week may drain funds from the secondary market, while the Hang Seng markets giving up the gains ended flat. Although some of the indices in the region made a lower close but the Japanese market despite coming off the day’s high, closed just shy of the 20000 mark, extending a two-month rally spurred by a weakening Japanese yen. The expectations the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in December has pushed the yen weaker. Seoul shares too rose sharply amid foreign fund buying in undervalued blue-chips, while Taiwan Weighted rallied 1.2 percent.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,635.55 | -12.38 | -0.34 |
Hang Seng | 22,488.94 | -9.06 | -0.04 |
Jakarta Composite | 4,597.06 | 11.51 | 0.25 |
KLSE Composite | 1,683.09 | 1.33 | 0.49 |
Nikkei 225 | 19,944.41 | 96.83 | 0.23 |
Straits Times | 2,884.69 | -18.76 | -0.24 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,030.68 | 21.26 | 1.06 |
Taiwan Weighted | 8,484.90 | 98.77 | 1.18 |