Most of the Asian equity indices ended the day’s trade in the positive terrain on Thursday shrugging off data showing China’s manufacturing activity shrank for a fifth straight month in March, with market participants seeing Japanese equities as a buy. The world’s third largest economy Japan registered an unexpected trade surplus of 32.9 billion yen in February, the first surplus in five months, against a forecast for a 120 billion yen deficit, sending the yen against the dollar to an intraday low. However, gains were capped by weak Chinese purchasing managers index (PMI).
The Chinese Shanghai Composite edged lower by 0.10 percent as data showing the country’s factory activity shrank renewed concerns about global growth. The HSBC flash PMI, the earliest indicator of China’s industrial activity, fell to 48.1 in March from February’s four-month high of 49.6, with new orders sinking to a four-month low.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 2,375.77 | -2.42 | -0.10 |
Hang Seng | 20,901.56 | 44.93 | 0.22 |
Jakarta Composite | 4,041.56 | 5.33 | 0.13 |
KLSE Composite | 1,583.24 | 0.71 | 0.04 |
Nikkei 225 | 10,127.08 | 40.59 | 0.40 |
Straits Times | 2,979.25 | -26.38 | -0.88 |
Seoul Composite | 2,026.12 | -1.11 | -0.05 |
Taiwan Weighted | 8,059.94 | 78.00 | 0.98 |