Asia report: Most markets rise, Japan exports fall well short
Most equity markets were higher in Asia on Thursday, with the exception of Japan, as investors watched for any developments on the Russia-Ukraine front.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.83% at 27,232.87, as the yen strengthened 0.4% on the dollar to last trade at JPY 115.06.
It was a negative day for the benchmark’s major components, with robotics specialist Fanuc down 2.02%, Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing losing 1.13%, and technology investment giant SoftBank Group 2.27% lower.
The broader Topix index was off 0.79% by the end of trading in Tokyo, closing at 1,931.24.
Those losses in Japan came after fresh data showed export growth in January was well below forecasts.
Exports from Japan grew by 9.6% year-on-year, which was well short of the 16.5% improvement pencilled in by economists polled by Reuters.
“If we ignore base effects - January 2021 was a particularly strong month for exports - performance also looks less dire,” said Craig Botham at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
He noted that exports fell “only marginally” in month-on-month terms, down 0.1% in January, from a 0.3% fall in December.
“On a month-on-month seasonally-adjusted basis, trade with the US actually improved, and the main drags came from China, Asia ex-China with Korea also observing a Lunar New Year holiday, and the EU.”
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite eked out gains of 0.06% to 3,468.04, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite added 0.23% to 2,302.16.
South Korea’s Kospi was ahead 0.53% at 2,744.09, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 0.3% firmer at 24,792.77.
Seoul’s blue-chip technology stocks were on the front foot, with Samsung Electronics up 0.27% and SK Hynix 1.92% firmer.
“The conflict between Russia and Ukraine could also add to the volatility in stock markets,” said AvaTrade chief market analyst Naeem Aslam of the global situation on Thursday.
“Earlier this week, there were reports that Russia was withdrawing its troops from near Ukraine’s borders.
“However, as per Washington, no troops have been ordered to leave the area. Instead, 7,000 troops have been added to the already deployed 150,000.
“According to officials in Washington, Russia’s actions do not support the stance that it is looking forward to a diplomatic solution.”
Oil prices were lower as the region went to bed, with Brent crude last down 1.74% at $93.16 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate losing 1.86% to $91.92.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 managed gains of 0.16% to 7,296.20, while across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 was 1.11% higher at 12,256.82.
The down under dollars were both stronger on the greenback, with the Aussie last ahead 0.14% at AUD 1.3879, and the Kiwi advancing 0.44% to NZD 1.4906.