Market Update
Asian markets outside China were trading higher Thursday as investors returned from the New Year's holiday yesterday.
Sydney's All Ordinaries was up 0.4% while Mumbai's BSE Sensex added 0.6% at 9:29 a.m. IST. Japan's Nikkei remained closed.
On the other hand, mainland China's Shanghai Composite lost 0.4% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng erased 0.2% after data showed manufacturing activity in the world's second largest economy grew at a slightly lower pace in December.
The final print of December HSBC manufacturing purchasing managers' index came in at a three-month low of 50.5, unchanged from the flash reading released earlier this month. The reading was, however, lower than the final print of 50.8 in November.
A reading above 50 indicates expansion in economic activity and vice-versa.
Stocks on the Move
Metal players in Hong Kong were mostly lower. Angang Steel lost 1.4%, Jiangxi Copper erased 1% and Aluminium Corp. of China also gave up 1%.
Among oil stocks CNOOC lost 0.8%, whereas China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. fell 1.3%.
Financials were also mostly lower -- ICBC fell 1%, Agricultural Bank of China slipped 0.5% while China Life Insurance dropped over 2%.
Retailers, however, were on the other side of the ladder. Esprit Holdings soared over 6% while Belle International Holdings edged up 0.3%.
In Mumbai, stocks across all sectors were trading in the green. Banks were among the forerunners with Axis Bank adding over 2% while ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank improved 1.5% and 1.2% respectively.
Oil stocks climbed following reports of hike in prices of aviation turbine fuel. HPCL added 0.6% and Indian Oil Corp. gained 1.4%.
In Australia, miners were leading the gains in early action.
Gold mining companies found solid support following the uptick in gold futures. OceanaGold Corp. bounced over 5%, Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd. enhanced 3.2% while Newcrest Mining surged over 7%.
Among others, diversified iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group and Rio Tinto improved 1.7% and around 1% respectively, while index leader BHP Billiton added a modest 0.6%.
Adding to the gains, retailers bounced back from early losses with Wesfarmers Ltd., Woolworths Ltd. and Myer Holdings adding around 0.4% each.