Stock indices of the largest countries in the Asia-Pacific region (APR) are mainly falling during trading on Thursday, the only exception is the Shanghai indicator, which shows a weak positive trend.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.5% by 8:15 a.m. China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.2%.
Shares of biopharmaceutical company Wuxi Biologics (Cayman) Inc. are traded among the drop leaders in Hong Kong. (-8.4%), Internet companies Baidu Inc. (SPB: BIDU) (-7.5%) and video game developer Netease Inc. (SPB: NTES) (-5%).
Papers of casino operator Sands China (SPB: 1928) Ltd. cheaper by 1% after the release of quarterly reports. The company increased its net loss in the third quarter due to continued covid restrictions in Macau.
Shares of sports equipment manufacturer Li Ning Co. lose 4% in value despite the fact that the company reported solid sales growth in the third quarter. Analysts note that Li Ning’s Q4 outlook is rather weak due to anti-coronavirus restrictions.
Meanwhile, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC, the country’s central bank) on Thursday kept its base interest rate on loans (LPR) for a period of one year at 3.65% per annum. And the rate on five-year loans was left at 4.3% per annum, the NBK said in a statement.
The value of the Japanese Nikkei 225 index fell by 1%.
The leading decline among the components of the index are the shares of the manufacturer of electric cables Fujikura Ltd. (-5.4%), manufacturer of diagnostic medical equipment Hoya Corp. (-3.2%) and sanitary ware manufacturer Toto Ltd. (-3%).
Market capitalization of Shinsei Bank Ltd. jumped by 7.6%. The Japanese media reported that the “parent” company of the bank – SBI Holdings Inc. is considering delisting its shares from the stock exchange.
The volume of Japanese exports in September increased by 28.9% compared to the same month last year and reached 8.819 trillion yen (about $59 billion), data from the Ministry of Finance of the country showed. Imports soared 45.9% last month to a record 10.913 trillion yen. Japan’s foreign trade deficit reached 2.094 trillion yen in September compared to 636.9 billion yen a year earlier. Thus, the negative balance of the foreign trade balance is recorded for the 14th month – the longest such period since 2015.
South Korean index Kospi fell by 0.7%.
The market value of the largest automakers in the country Kia Corp. and Hyundai Motor are down 1.2% and 0.3% respectively.
The Australian S&P/ASX 200 fell 1%.
Shares of the world’s largest mining companies BHP Group and Rio Tinto fell 2.3% and 1.9%, respectively.
Oil and gas producers Woodside Energy and Santos jumped 6.2% and 2% on third-quarter output growth.
The unemployment rate in Australia in September remained unchanged compared to August and amounted to 3.5%, according to the country’s statistical office. Analysts also did not expect a change, writes Trading Economics. The number of employed last month increased by only 900 people.
