The Asian markets barring Nikkei 225 concluded Thursday’s trade in green with investors indulging in some bargain hunting after recent steep losses. However, gains remained capped as there was some cautiousness ahead of the US non-farm payroll data scheduled on Friday. Chinese Shanghai Composite remained closed on account of Lunar New Year. The data released showed that foreign investment in Japanese stocks fell ¥751.9 billion ($7.41 billion) last week. Taiwanese CPI rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.76%, from 0.33% in the preceding quarter. Hong Kong’s total retail sales in 2013 grew 11% in value and 10.6% in volume over a year earlier to reach $494.5 billion. The total retail sales value in December, provisionally estimated at $49.7 billion, increased 5.7% year-on-year. After netting out the effect of price changes, total retail sales volume rose 6.1%. The HSBC Hong Kong purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 52.7 in January from 51.2 in December, indicating that business conditions improved for Hong Kong’s private sector.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | - | - | - |
Hang Seng | 21423.13 | 153.75 | 0.72 |
Jakarta Composite | 4424.71 | 40.40 | 0.92 |
KLSE Composite | 1797.90 | 12.02 | 0.67 |
Nikkei 225 | 14155.12 | -25.26 | -0.18 |
Straits Times | 2988.27 | 28.18 | 0.95 |
KOSPI Composite | 1907.89 | 16.57 | 0.88 |
Taiwan Weighted | 8311.01 | 46.53 | 0.56 |