Asian markets, Shanghai Comp record mixed trading fortunes

Asian stock markets fell at the open on Friday, on the back of declines in offshore markets and a continued slump in commodities. Spot gold slipped another 0.5 percent to USD 1,087.56 an ounce, as a steeper-than-forecast drop in US jobless claims rejuvenated the dollar.

A stronger dollar also took the price of oil down to its lowest since March 31. US crude for September futures settled down 74 cents at USD 48.45 a barrel, hitting a nearly four-month low. Brent crude was down 90 cents at $55.25 a barrel.

Overnight, Wall Street chalked up a three-day losing streak, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing about half a percent lower for the year, on the back of lackluster earnings from index majors such as 3M and Caterpillar. The S&P 500 lost 0.6 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq closed down 0.5 percent.

China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite index edged up 0.3 percent, staying on course to extend a six-session winning streak, even as the preliminary China Caixin PMI fell to 48.2, well below the 49.7 forecast from a Reuters poll and the 50-mark separating growth from contraction. The data also marked a 15-month low.

The closely watched PMI takes on a new sponsor after HSBC’s five-year contract came to an end. Chinese media group Caixin, which focuses on business news, will brand the China data, saying it was part of a strategy to increase its financial information offerings.

AIA Group, the world’s second-largest life insurer by market capitalization, retreated nearly 1 percent despite reporting a 21 percent rise in the value of new business for the first half of the year, driven by strong sales in Hong Kong and China.

Gaming plays continued to outperform; Sands China rallied more than 2 percent, adding to Thursday’s 7 percent jump, on the back of better-than-expected quarterly revenue.

Losses in the index heavyweights weighed on the bourse; Fast Retailing lost 1.5 percent from the get-go, while Fanuc and Softbank receded 1 percent each. Softbank, the telecom and Internet investor, is gearing up for dollar and euro-bond issuances, according to a report by the Nikkei business daily on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund warned Japan that it needs to step up on reforms or risk slowing growth, “stagflation” and turmoil in financial markets, economists wrote in their annual assessment of the world’s third-biggest economy.

Australia’s S&P ASX 200 index nursed a modestly weaker start amid mixed trading among the banking and resources sector, while the Australian dollar shaved off 0.6 percent to USD 0.7308 against the greenback – its lowest level since May 2009 – from USD 0.7345 before the data release.

Among early-trade laggards, Evolution Mining and Newcrest Mining tumbled 7.9 and 5.2 percent, respectively, while Alacer Gold retreated 3.6 percent on the back of soft gold prices.

Market bellwether BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto trimmed losses to 0.1 and 0.6 percent, respectively, after falling 3 and 1.9 percent in the previous session. Macquarie Group underperformed financials to tank 2.7 percent after the management said it will look to raise equity for potential acquisitions at its annual general meeting on Thursday.
South Korea’s Kospi index touched an eight-day low, but the won recovered from a two-year low to trade at 1,159.9 against the greenback. Earlier at the open, the local currency hit 1,162.1 — its lowest level since June 2013.

Hyundai Motor fluctuated near the flatline after announcing an plunge of 23.8 percent in second-quarter net profit from a year earlier due to a strong and increased competition.

Kia Motors slipped 0.5 percent after a 27 percent fall in net profit for the June quarter.
Memory chipmaker SK Hynix shed 0.1 percent, a day after rallying 2.1 percent on the back of a share buyback worth 859.1 billion won.