Asia report: Most markets higher as Park leaves office in disgrace
Markets in Asia were mostly higher on Friday, as uncertainty grew in South Korea after a court there upheld parliament’s vote to impeach President Park Geun-hye.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 surged 1.48% to 19,604.61, with the yen continuing to weaken against the greenback.
It was last 0.38% weaker at JPY 115.39 per $1.
Technology firm Toshiba had a volatile day, sliding sharply at the open before rising again to finish 1.71% higher.
Concerns were mounting that Toshiba had hired bankruptcy attorneys at its US subsidiary to look at the viability of entering Chapter 11 bankruptcy after its mammoth multi-billion dollar writedown.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.13% at 3,212.42, while the Shenzhen Composite managed to rise 0.2% to 2,013.64.
Chinese drug company Fosun Pharmaceuticals rose 1.18%, as it held early talks with a number of buyout funds over a potential joint takeover of German generic drugs manufacturer Stada.
South Korea’s Kospi added 0.3% to 2,097.35 after the Constitutional Court ruled on President Park’s impeachment, upholding parliament’s vote last year to impeach her.
As a result of the ruling, Park had to leave office immediately, with the country legally bound to hold elections for a replacement within 60 days.
Sizeable crowds gathered in central Seoul - both supporters and detractors - as police mobilised more than 20,000 additional officers in an attempt to keep the peace.
Korea would now face “near-term political uncertainty and the likely further escalation of economic risks facing [the country],” noted IHS Markit’s Asia Pacific chief economist Rajiv Biswas.
The impeachment was only adding to the existing geopolitical tensions on the peninsula, as North Korea continued its belligerent testing of missiles and the US deployed an anti-missile system in the South in response to that threat.
Beijing had made it clear it viewed the US deployment as a threat itself, and reportedly responded with boycotts of South Korean businesses operating in China, along with alleged cyber attacks on South Korean firms.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index finished 0.29% higher at 23,568.67.
Oil prices were slightly higher during Asian trading, with Brent crude last up 0.34% at $52.37 and West Texas Intermediate adding 0.53% to $49.54.
Prices for crude had plummeted during US hours overnight, as officials from Saudi Arabia held closed-door talks with a number of major US oil producers.
It was reportedly warning that it was not prepared to extend its production freeze to offset the increase in production from US shale producers.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was in the green by 0.6% at 5,775.62, while New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 added 0.5% to 7,177.58, led higher by the index company itself, as NZX rose 2.8%.
The down under dollars were both stronger, with the Aussie last 0.2% ahead on the greenback at AUD 1.3297 and the Kiwi strengthening 0.24% to NZD 1.4458 per $1.