Asian markets end mostly in red

Sentiments continue to be bearish ahead of weekends


Asian stocks markets headed mostly lower ahead of the weekend as investors eyed a mix of continued worries on the peripheral European economies and a rush to cover positions in risky assets amid thin trades owing to the Thanksgiving Day. The day started on moderately steady note on lack of cues from the overnight trades, as the US markets remained shut. The initial spell of gains was cut short by a reemergence of risk appetite during the late trades even as the Spanish PM Zapatero said that Spain is cutting its budget and dashed out possibilities of a rescue package for the European country. Most major indices ended in red with Japan being the only notable exception.



The Japanese stocks closed in red amid reports stating further worsening of the geopolitical tensions in Korea Peninsula where South Korea reportedly announced plans to carry out joint military drill with the US on Sunday. The Japanese Yen remained mixed, helping exporters to certain extend and keeping the losses limited for the broad markets though. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index dropped 40.20 points, or 0.40% to 10,040.

On the economic front, a report released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications revealed that consumer prices in the country fell for the 20th straight month in October, though the pace of decline moderated sharply due to a hike in the tobacco tax rate. The report further revealed that core consumer prices, which exclude fresh food from the price basket, dropped 0.6% year-on-year last month, slowing sharply from the 1.1% fall in September. The decline was in line with expectations.

The Australian market eked out some gains though the index-linked counters slipped from their early highs amid a cautious undertone in the overall world asset markets and firm undertone in the US dollar. Banks were under pressure after Glenn Stevens, Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia said that the central bank's decision to raise the benchmark interest rates by a quarter percentage point earlier this month was finely balanced and appropriate. Lack of global cues due to holiday in Wall Street on Thursday due to Thanksgiving Day impacted market sentiment. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index added 4.90 points, or 0.11% to closed at 4,598 points, breaking under the 4600 points barrier.

In China, stocks closed lower amid thin volumes as a close under the 2900 points in last session led to more sell off for the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which closed down 0.92 percent, or 26.56 points, to close at 2,871.70.

In Mumbai, the key benchmark indices extended recent steep losses as a bank loans bribery scandal and weak global stocks weighed on investor sentiment. Intraday volatility was high. The BSE 30-share Sensex was provisionally down 192.56 points or 1%, off 292.01 points from the day's high and up 170.78 points from the day's low. The market breadth was extremely weak with stocks of a number of small and mid-cap shares falling sharply. Realty and construction shares slumped, extending recent steep losses. But, banking shares recovered from early lows with ICICI Bank and State Bank of India logging decent gains.

In other markets, the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong dropped 0.77%, the TSEX index in Taiwan gained 0.64% while the Korean KOSPI edged up 0.09%. In commodities, Gold bounced back from its lows on continued worries regarding the debt troubles of the peripheral European economies and the added dose of fluctuations in the global currencies markets supported the yellow metal. The Gold futures on GLOBEX fell witnessed a quick sell off to $1364.10 per ounce in the Asian trades following a massive bout of strength in the US dollar. The greenback rose in thin trading following the Thanksgiving Day and topped a fresh two-month high of 1.3245 against the Euro.