Asian Markets at One-month High, but Tokyo Stocks Fall

Asian markets surged to a 1-month high on Thursday and were on track for the best annual performance since 2009, but Tokyo’s Nikkei fell to session lows amid losses for the dollar.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed 0.56% lower at 22,783.98 as the greenback lost ground against the yen. Japan’s stock market often struggles when the yen strengthens due to the amount of international business many of its companies do.

Among the worst performers were Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Fukuoka Financial Group both plunging more than 2% each. Other sectors that closed lower were banks, automakers, and tech firms.

On the other hand, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.5% at 565.92 points, which is a level last hit in late November. It has risen more than 32% this year.

South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.26% to close at 2,467.49, outperforming other indexes in the region. Samsung Electronics closed the session higher by 3.24%, despite the news that prosecutors were looking for a 12-year prison sentence for Vice Chairman Jay Lee for a corruption case.

Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index advanced 0.7% thanks to a rebound in Apple supply stocks. Yesterday, several Apple suppliers suffered losses on concerns about weak demand for the iPhone X.

The Shanghai Composite was up 0.65% to close at 3,297.21, while the Shenzhen Composite rose 0.45% to end at 1,887.34. These were driven by gains in the consumer, materials, and energy sectors. The CSI 300, which tracks large-cap companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen, was higher by 0.9%.

In Taiwan, the tech-heavy TAIEX rose 0.77% higher, with Apple assembler Foxconn adding 2.3%, and smartphone lens manufacturer Largan Precision soared more than 6%.

In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.3% to close at 6,088.1, thanks to resources space and telecommunications sectors. However, utilities and industrials finished the session slightly lower.

On Wall Street, stocks closed slightly higher in another flat session on Wednesday. The S&P 500 Index increased 0.1% to 2,682.62, and the Dow Jones industrial average finished 0.1% higher to 24,774.30.

The Nasdaq gained 0.04% to 6,939.34, but the Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks fell 0.02% to 1,543.94.

In Europe, the major European markets finished in a mixed performance on Wednesday. The French CAC 40 Index rose 0.1%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 Index increased 0.4%.

In commodities, spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,289.5 an ounce, which was a level last seen in late November.

Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, climbed 16 cents to $66.60 a barrel. US crude increased 11 cents to $59.75 after surging to a 2-1/2 year-high of $60.01 on Tuesday.

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