Nikkei jumps 10 pct on soft yen, BOJ rate cut talk; HK shares soar on rate cuts
The Nikkei average surged 10% on Thursday to its highest close in more than a week, buoyed by exporters such as Kyocera on a softer yen, amid talk of a rate cut by the Bank of Japan after similar moves by the United States and China. In active trade, the benchmark Nikkei climbed 817.86 points to end at 9,029.76, the highest close since Oct. 22.
The 10% jump was the biggest one-day gain since Oct. 14, when the Nikkei surged 14.2% for the biggest one-day gain in its history. The benchmark remains down 41% so far this year, but it has gained 26% over the past three days. The broader Topix shot up 8.3% to 899.37.
Hong Kong shares rallied for a third straight day on Thursday, surging 12.8% after another round of rate reductions worldwide, but the main index is still 55% off its life high hit on the same day last year. Shares surged across the board, with global lender HSBC leading the charge and commodities stocks gaining after China lowered borrowing costs.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed up 1,627.78 points at 14,329.85, with energy stocks such as PetroChina helping to fuel the rally. The index has risen 30% from a four-and-half-year closing low recorded on Monday. The main index hit a high of 31,958.41 on Oct. 30, 2007. (Reuters)
Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks slumped, sending the region's benchmark index to the lowest level in four years, after commodity prices tumbled on concern a global economic slowdown is reducing demand for raw materials.
Posco retreated 7.8 percent after global steel production dropped last month. BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group plunged more than 8 percent after European regulators said a takeover of Rio by BHP may break antitrust rules, people close to the case said. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. lost 4.8 percent after profit fell by a third.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 3.2 percent to 85 as of 9:28 a.m. in Tokyo, set for the lowest level since May 2004. The gauge has plunged 46 percent this year.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 5.2 percent to 8,227.75, poised for its weakest close since May 2003. Equity indexes in Australia, New Zealand and South Korea also tumbled.
U.S. stocks slumped yesterday as the Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 6.1 percent to the lowest level since April 2003.
Crude oil for December delivery dropped 7.5 percent to $66.75 a barrel in New York yesterday, the lowest settlement since June 2007 as an economic slowdown reduced fuel consumption. Copper futures declined to as much as $1.823, a three-year low, while gold sank 4.3 percent.
The Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index of 19 raw materials plunged as much as 3.3 percent to 269.48, the lowest since Sept. 8, 2004. A measure of six metals traded on the London Metal Exchange fell 5.9 percent, with copper dropping 7.6 percent.
Commodities Slump
BHP lost 8 percent to A$24.91. Rio Tinto declined 15 percent to A$66.97. Woodside Petroleum Ltd., operator of Australia's A$25 billion ($20 billion) North West Shelf liquefied natural gas venture, fell 3 percent to A$39.64.
European Union regulators told lawyers for BHP that its $76 billion hostile bid for Rio Tinto Group may break antitrust rules, two people close to the case said.
Second-half profit at ANZ Banking, the nation's third- largest lender, fell 35 percent to A$1.36 billion ($911 million) as provisions for delinquent loans surged. ANZ dropped 4.8 percent to A$18.09.