Asia report: Most markets rise after dovish Fed minutes

Most Asian markets rose on Thursday, with Japan’s benchmark finally breaking out of a seven-day spate of losses in the face of renewed strength in the yen.

The Nikkei 225 closed up 0.22% at 15,749.84 after choppy trading through the session, with the yen climbing steadily throughout the day.

During Asian hours, the yen rocketed ahead against the dollar to levels not seen since late October 2014, when the Bank of Japan expanded its quantitative easing programme.

The safe haven currency was last trading 1.27% stronger against the USD, at JPY 108.40. It was pushing closer to 113 just a week ago.

As a result, the Japanese exporters were mostly off by the time markets closed. Honda, Nissan and Toyota all lost between 0.21 and 0.6%. Panasonic bucked the trend, however, and added 1.02%.

The country’s beleaguered airbag manufacturer Takata was down 1.42%, after reports emerged on Wednesday that a 17-year-old driver was killed in Texas last month, while driving a recalled 2002 Honda Civic.

Markets in China lost out, with the Shanghai Composite down 1.35% at 3,009.51 while the Shenzhen Composite closed off 1.6% at 1,930.26.

Renminbi strengthened against the greenback during Asian trading as well, with the yuan last trading 0.16% closer to the dollar at CNY 6.4703.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rose 0.29% to 20,266.05, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.13% to 1,973.89.

Korean electronics giant Samsung closed down 1.25% after announcing its earnings guidance for the first quarter. Its operating profit to the end of March was KRW 6.6trn (£4.1bn), up 10% on a year ago.

Analysts were concerned that the quarter might be the peak of Samsung’s year, with the Galaxy S7 smartphone giving sales a temporary boost.

The quieter day in Asia came after a solid session in the US overnight, after the Federal Reserve released meeting minutes which revealed a dovish tone.

"The release of the Fed minutes overnight largely confirmed that there will not be a rate rise in April, and there's little in the statement or recent U.S. data that pushes strongly for a rate rise in June either," noted IG market analyst Angus Nicholson.

He said the news was initially greeted with positivity in Asian trade, though the region’s attention quickly went back to the yen.

Oil prices remained on the up during Asian trading, though it was mixed as the region went to bed. Brent crude was last up 0.23% at $39.93 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was flat at $37.79.

The boost in oil came after the latest data from the US Energy Information Administration showed crude stockpiles decreased by 4.9m barrels last week. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a buildup of inventory, by 3.2m barrels.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.37% to 4,964.08. Energy was rising in Sydney, with Santos up 3.52% and Woodside Petroleum gaining 1.83%.

New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 rose 0.3% to 6,755.22, with health software provider Orion leading the market for a second session.

On Wednesday the firm announced its second large contract in a fortnight, this one with Metro North - the largest health service provider in Queensland, Australia. Orion’s stock gained 4.6% to an eight month high.

The down under dollars retreated from the greenback, with the Aussie last 0.6% weather at AUD 1.3239 per USD and the Kiwi off 0.29% at NZD 1.4696.