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29 April 2011
Asian markets sink on slowing US economic growth
, On Friday April 29, 2011, 1:34 am
BANGKOK (AP) -- A slowdown in growth in the U.S. and mixed corporate earnings dampened stock market sentiment in Asia on Friday.
Oil prices fell to near $112 a barrel as the news on the American economy blunted crude's 33 percent gain over the past two months. A slowdown in growth in the world's No. 1 economy also proved worrisome to Asian companies that count on strong U.S. consumer demand. The economy slowed sharply in the first three months of the year.
"Equity markets are reacting nervously to weak U.S. data overnight. Demand from the U.S. for Asia exports may actually slow," said Dariusz Kowalczuk of Credit Agricole in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was down 0.4 percent to 23,805.63, with yuan units of Hui Xian Real Estate Investment Trust falling 7 percent in their trading debut. They are the first equity securities denominated in China's currency to trade outside of mainland China.
South Korea's Kospi index slipped 0.9 percent to 2,187.86, with technology shares dragging the index down.
Samsung Electronics lost 1.8 percent after the company announced its first quarter profit fell 30 percent on declines in memory chip prices and reduced profitability in liquid crystal displays and flat screen televisions. Rival Hynix Semiconductor Inc. slid 2 percent. LG Electronics lost 4.2 percent.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was off 1.4 percent to 4,805.80, with mining shares among the big losers. The world's biggest mining company, BHP Billiton Ltd., fell 1.5 percent. Shares in Rio Tinto Ltd. lost 1.7 percent.
Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, India and Thailand were also down.
On the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.2 percent at 2,891.83, with China Eastern Airlines, one of the country's three major state-owned carriers, up 1.2 percent after it announced profits had risen 32 percent in the first three months of the year, helped by a rebound in air travel.
Japan's Nikkei 225 was closed for the start of Golden Week holiday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed at another 2011 high Thursday despite modest U.S. economic growth in the first quarter. The U.S. economy grew a 1.8 percent annual rate between January and March, the Commerce Department said. That's the weakest rate since last spring and underscores concerns about the strength of the U.S. recovery. Higher oil prices cut into consumer spending and bad weather slowed down construction projects.
The S&P 500 rose 4.82 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,360.48. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 72.35, or 0.6 percent, to 12,763.31. The Nasdaq composite gained 2.65, or 0.1 percent, to 2,872.53.
Corporate earnings were mixed. Procter & Gamble Co. rose nearly 1 percent after the maker of Tide detergent and Pampers diapers reported higher earnings but cut its forecast for the year due to rising costs for raw materials. Exxon Mobil Corp. -- the world's largest publicly traded company -- fell 0.5 percent even after the oil giant reported its best quarterly earnings since 2008 -- perhaps due to high expectations.
More people applied for unemployment benefits for the first time last week. The increase, the second in three weeks, suggests that the job market remains sluggish.
Benchmark crude for June delivery was down 36 cents to $112.50 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract settled at $112.86 per barrel on the Nymex on Thursday.
The euro was higher at $1.4833 from $1.4821 late Thursday in New York. It had peaked at $1.4881 Thursday, its highest point in nearly 17 months before softening. The dollar was almost unchanged at 81.58 yen from 81.57 yen.
Source: Yahoo! Finance
