Market Update
Tokyo stocks were outperformers in a muted Asian session Thursday.
The Nikkei was up 1.2%. The Shanghai Composite slipped 0.1% while the Hang Seng was up 0.4%. The Sensex declined 0.2% while the All Ordinaries edged up 0.1%.
Similar to the manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index earlier this week, China's services PMI data also presented a conflicting picture with HSBC's version rising to a four month-high of 51.9 in March from February’s 51.0 while the official version showed a slight drop to 54.5 from 55 in February.
Earlier today, China also announced a new stimulus package to "stabilize growth" that includes the lowering of tax burdens on small enterprises, speeding up railway construction, and more low-income housing.
In Australia, data showed retail sales gained for a 10th straight month, up 0.2% in February, although below estimates for a 0.3% gain, and also slower than January’s 1.2% increase.
A separate report showed the country’s trade surplus narrowed to AUD1.2 billion in February, down from AUD1.39 billion in January, but still higher than some estimates. Stocks pared their gains, as they reacted to the data.
Stocks on the Move
Renesas Electronics was down about 2%, giving up a portion of its gains yesterday.
Sharp Corp. moved up over 3%, possibly on the back of a Nikkei report that says the company plans to double shipments of its energy-efficient LCD panels to China by the end of the year.
Fast Retailing picked up 2.6% after it said domestic sales in its Uniqlo chain of stores rose 0.6% in March over the previous year.
ABC-Mart was up over 3% after a Nikkei report said the company's operating profit for the financial year just ended is likely to set yet another record, for the 11th straight time.
Among the major names, Sony was up half a percent while Panasonic was up a percent and Olympus gained 1.4%.
Toyota edged up 0.3% while Honda and Nissan were up over a percent each. Mazda declined 0.2%.
Cement, steel, and construction companies were mostly higher and outperformed in China after the announcement of the stimulus package. Cement producer BBMG Corp. hardened 3.7% in Hong Kong while Anhui Conch Cement firmed up 2.5% on the mainland.
Also in Hong Kong, China National Building Material Company was up about 4% while China Shanshui Cement Group gained 3.3%. Angang Steel strengthened 2.4% while Manshaan Iron & Steel was up 3.4%.
China Railway Group advanced 5.9%.
Shares of Italian fashion house Prada fell about 7% after the company reported 2013 results.
BHEL was the top loser in Mumbai, down 2.4%, followed by SBI, down 2.1%.
Axis Bank, Gail India, L&T, Coal India, M&M, ONGC, and Airtel were down in a range between 1% and 1.5%.
The broader-market listed IDFC surged over 8% but pared those gains and was up 2.3% at the time of writing after it emerged as one of two entities to win a banking license. IDFC shares are up 16% over the last week, compared to a 1.7% gain for the Sensex in the same period.
The Sensex created yet another lifetime record high in early trade as it gained 69.16 points to touch 22,620.65 points before scaling back lower.
Retailers were gainers in Sydney after the upbeat sales data. Harvey Norman picked up 1.2% while David Jones and Wesfarmers were both up 0.9% and 0.7% each, respectively.