Asia report: Markets finish lower on disappointing China, Japan data

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 1.44% at 22,068.24, as the yen strengthened 0.3% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 107.01.

The country’s industrial output figures missed expectations for January, declining 6.6% month-on-month.

A Reuters-polled forecast was anticipating a fall of 4.2%.

Carmakers, financial plays, manufacturers and technology names were all in the red, with Fast Retailing down 2.52%, Honda Motor off 2.19% and SoftBank falling 2.39%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.99% at 3,259.50, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite managed to post gains of 0.16%.

China’s official manufacturing PMI for February came in at 50.3, missing the 51.2 forecast by Reuters and well below the 51.3 reading released in January.

South Korea’s Kospi was off 1.17% at 2,427.36, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong slipped 1.36% to 30,844.72.

Samsung Electronics reversed earlier gains to finish 0.68% lower in Seoul, while carmakers and technology plays were all broadly in the red as well.

Oil prices were lower, with Brent crude last down 0.21% at $66.49 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate falling 0.16% to $62.91.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.68% to 6,016.00, dragged under by gold producers and the telecoms subindex, as well as the hefty financials sector which fell 0.55%.

Among the major miners, BHP was down 1.96% and Rio Tinto slid 0.55% in Sydney trading.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 lost 0.2% to close at 8,373.82, led lower by subscription broadcaster Sky, which sank 9.6% to a 10-week low.

The company recently took an axe to its prices in a bid to stem the flow of customers away from its services, and cut its interim dividend in half.

The down under dollars were mixed, with the Aussie last 0.32% stronger against the greenback at AUD 1.2797 and the Kiwi retreating 0.2% to NZD 1.3849.