Vietnam Daily News

Asian marts mixed after EU debt plan

Written by Dailynews.vn Tuesday, 13 December 2011 18:46

Asian markets were mixed yesterday as optimism over last week's European plan to introduce tougher fiscal rules to save the eurozone were weighed by lingering concerns leaders may not have done enough. Traders remained nervous as Britain chose not to join the deal, while eyes will be on Standard & Poor's, which last week warned the eurozone of a downgrade if it is unable to come up with a viable plan. Tokyo rose 1.37 percent to 8,653.82, Sydney closed 1.18 percent stronger, rising 49.8 points to 4,252.8 and Seoul added 25.01 points, to close at 1,899.76. Shanghai slipped 1.02 percent, or 23.72 points, to 2,291.55. The bourse was weighed by lingering concerns over China's slowing growth. On Friday 26 of the 27 EU members backed tighter budget policing in a "new fiscal compact" to resolve the crisis threatening to crack apart the monetary union and send the global economy into another deep recession. HONG KONG: Shares reversed early gains to end 0.1 percent lower yesterday as the Shanghai Composite Index closed at its lowest since March 2009 on doubts that Beijing will loosen monetary policy enough to cause a growth spurt. The Hang Seng finished at 18,575.7 points, after earlier retaking the 18,818 level in morning trade, a level that had served as support for more than a week before Friday. SINGAPORE: The Straits Times Index rose 0.3 percent to 2,701.72 at the close, paring gains of as much as 1 percent. These were among the most active shares: Hi-P International gained 0.8 percent to 64.5 Singapore cents, Neptune Orient Lines added 1.3 percent to S$1.14, while Hutchison Port Holdings Trust rose 0.8 percent to 62.5 US cents. Meanwhile, Singapore Telecom rose 2.6 percent to S$3.21. KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices ended mixed as sentiment turned cautious amid the volatility on regional markets, dealers said. The FBM KLCI was up 6.97 points to 1,467.10, after at 1,463.73. Dealers said sentiment remained cautious amid doubts that the pact for greater economic integration in Europe could bring about susbtantial results. The Finance Index rose 66.221 points to 13,007.11 and the Plantation Index jumped 66.72 points to 7,927.41, while the Industrial Index fell 3.67 points to 2,646.29. The FBM Emas Index added 47.58 points to 10,047.13, the ACE Index, however, lost 22.98 points to 4,151.47 while the Mid 70 Index rose 65.20 points to 10,980.91. In other markets: * Taipei rose 55.74 points, to 6,949.04. Hon Hai Precision gained 2.76 percent to T$81.9 while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co was 1.21 percent higher at T$75.0. * Manila slipped 0.38 percent, or 16.16 points, to 4,276.34. * Wellington closed 28.05 points, higher at 3,299.51. Contact Energy rose 0.74 percent to NZ$5.44 and Telecom added 0.71 percent to NZ$2.13 while Air New Zealand ended flat at NZ$0.92. * Jakarta ended 32.54 points, higher at 3,792.15. VIETNAM: The VN Index of Hochiminh Stock Exchange (STC) December 12 ended down for the fifth consecutive session, losing nearly 0.5 percent to 375.3 pts. On the northern bourse, the HNX Index lost 0.6 percent to 61.26 pts. The trading volume reached over 26 million units for 225 billion dong, down nearly 10 percent from the previous trading session. EUROPE: European shares fell yesterday as Moody's revealed it will review all EU credit ratings, blaming their failure to deliver "decisive policy measures" to fix the eurozone debt crisis. In morning deals, London's FTSE 100 index slid 0.66 percent to 5,493.05 points, Frankfurt's DAX 30 dipped 1.42 percent to 5,902.08 points and the Paris CAC 40 lost 1.20 percent to 3,137.84. "European markets awoke to a generally negative bias to risk assets this morning, with Moody's criticising the actions of eurozone leaders last week to the ongoing debt crisis as providing no new solutions," said Spreadex trader David White. "Early trading today reflects this sentiment, as inflationary concerns are so far replaced with that of growth," he added. AMERICA: Stocks closed sharply lower Monday after two big rating agencies criticized a fiscal pact between European leaders last week that is aimed at easing the region's debt crisis. Fitch Ratings said the deal to bind Europe's budgets more closely will make little difference. The region will face "a significant economic downturn" as it wrestles with its sovereign debt crisis for another year or more, Fitch predicted. The Dow Jones industrial average dove as many as 243 points in afternoon trading before closing down 163. Intel Corp. dragged the Dow lower, falling 4% after the chipmaker said its fourth-quarter revenue will be lower than expected because of supply chain problems. Intel is considered a bellwether for the computer industry because its chips are used in a wide range of products. The euro hit a 10-week low against the dollar, plunging nearly 2 cents. Yields on Italian bonds rose as investors fretted about that nation's debt burden. European stocks fell. Moody's Investors Service said that it will review the credit ratings of all European Union nations in the first quarter of next year. The statement doused optimism among investors that had lifted stocks and other risky assets late last week. The summit produced "few new measures" and Europe remains in a "critical and volatile stage," Moody's said in a published report. The pact, Moody's noted, does not address Europe's immediate problem: the crushing debt loads of some nations and their rising borrowing costs. The agreement "kicks off a process that has a chance of solving the next crisis, not this one," said Guy LeBas, chief fixed income strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott. "The problem is the changes they've agreed to go toward solving the root of current problems 12 months from now." Stocks fell broadly, with declines across all 10 industry groups in the Standard & Poor's 500 index and 28 of the 30 stocks in the Dow. The Dow closed down 163 points, or 1.3%, at 12,021. The S&P 500 lost 19, or 1.5%, to close at 1,236. The Nasdaq composite index dropped 35, or 1.3%, to close at 2,612. Financial stocks had some of the steepest declines. Investors fear that big banks might be damaged by the turmoil in Europe. Morgan Stanley fell 6.1%, Citigroup Inc. dropped 5.4%. Bank of America Corp. and JP Morgan Chase & Co. posted the biggest and third-biggest losses in the Dow 30, falling 4.7% and 3.4%, respectively. The warning from Moody's helped deflate optimism about last week's pact, which called for tougher fiscal discipline among European countries and a central authority with the ability to punish those that spend too much. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.02% from 2.07% late Friday, indicating stronger demand for low-risk investments. Bond yields fall as demand for them increases. Fears that Italy or Spain will default reduced demand for their government bonds, driving their yields higher and pushing their borrowing costs near the dangerous levels that forced Greece, Portugal and Ireland to take bailouts. The yield on the 10-year Italian bond rose to 6.53%. Greece and Portugal were forced to seek bailouts from their creditors when their bond yields approached 7%. Stocks in Italy led European markets to a much lower close. Italy's main index closed down 3.8%. Germany's DAX lost 3.4% and Spain's fell 3.1%. Among the top corporate movers, Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. jumped 6% after federal regulators approved a new form of one of its pain medications, extending its patent rights over the drug. Diamond Foods Inc. plunged 22.8% after reports of an investigation of its payments to walnut farmers. Lawsuits already have been filed, and more are expected. Vulcan Materials Co. shot up 15.4%, the most in the S&P 500, after Martin Marietta Materials Inc. made an unsolicited bid to buy the company for $4.74 billion in stock. Martin Marietta rose 1.2%. Benchmark Currency Rates USD EUR JPY GBP CHF CAD AUD HKD HKD 7.7828 10.2576 0.0999 12.1335 8.2967 7.5777 7.8280 - AUD 0.9942 1.3104 0.0128 1.5500 1.0599 0.9680 - 0.1277 CAD 1.0271 1.3537 0.0132 1.6012 1.0949 - 1.0330 0.1320 CHF 0.9381 1.2363 0.0120 1.4624 - 0.9133 0.9435 0.1205 GBP 0.6414 0.8454 0.0082 - 0.6838 0.6245 0.6452 0.0824 JPY 77.9365 102.719 - 121.505 83.0835 75.8831 78.3901 10.0140 EUR 0.7587 - 0.0097 1.1829 0.8088 0.7387 0.7631 0.0975 USD - 1.3180 0.0128 1.5590 1.0660 0.9737 1.0058 0.1285 Bloomberg

Source: www.intellasia.net/news/articles/stock_market/111350660.shtml