The markets across Asia snapped their recent losses and ended in positive territory on Thursday, taking cues from Wall Street, where the major averages ended in the green on positive comments about the economy from the Federal Reserve. Obama's State of the Union address also lifted market sentiment.
In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index gained 162.21 points, or 1.58% to 10,414, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues advanced 6.65 points, or 0.73%, to 914.
On the economic front, a report released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry revealed that retail sales in the country declined 0.3% year-on-year in December, at 12.995 trillion yen. Economists had expected the sales to have gained 0.3% year-over-year in December. The report further noted that on a seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales declined 1.2% in December following a 0.2% gain in the previous month. Economists expected retail sales to decline 0.2% for the month. For the fourth quarter, retail sales in the country declined 0.8% year-over-year to 34.848 trillion yen.
Glass and ceramic stocks advanced on optimism about recovery. NGK Insulators gained 2.00%, Asahi Glass climbed 2.65%, Toto Ltd rose 2.95%, Tokai Carbon advanced 2.83% and Nitto Boseki Co added 1.03%.
Electric machinery stocks gained on expectation that economic growth will gain momentum. Kyocera Corp. surged up 4.72%, Fanuc Ltd climbed 3.15%, Tokyo Electron rose 3.48%, TDK Corp gained 3.30%, Panasonic Corp. advanced 2.24% and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. increased 3.31%.
Canon, which stated that it expects full year 2010 net profit to rise 52%, gained 1.80%. Sony Corp. surged up 4.93% and Sharp Corp. added 0.90%.
Mixed trading was witnessed among bank stocks. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial gained 1.79%, Resona Holdings advanced 1.26% and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial added 0.42%. However, Mizuho Financial ended in negative territory with a loss of 3.26%.
Iron and steel stocks ended mixed after Nippon Steel revised its profit forecast for fiscal 2009. The stock slumped 3.75% on huge volumes. Among other steel stocks, JFE Holdings declined 1.72%and Kobe Steel fell 2.35%. However, Pacific Metals Co. managed in positive territory with a gain of 0.65%.
Mixed trading was witnessed among automotive stocks. Toyota Motor plunged 3.91% after ordering recall of defective vehicles from the US market, while Suzuki Motor shed 1.23%. However, weakening of the local currency attracted buying interest in other automotive stocks. Honda Motor climbed 3.29%, Nissan Motor rose 2.83% and Mazda Motor gained 3.08%.
In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 28.70 points, or 0.62% to close at 4,673, while the All-Ordinaries Index ended at 4,698, representing a gain of 27.70 points, or 0.59%.
On the economic front, data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed that about 1.7 million tonnes of grapes were crushed during the 2008/09 financial year, 5.4% lower than the previous year. The report further noted that crush produced 1.2 billion liters of wine for the year, down 5.9% from last year. Production of red/rose wine during the year declined 6.8% while white wine production fell 4.5%.
In his address, President Barack Obama reiterated that the worst of the crisis is over for the economy, but the trails of the devastation are still there. Obama laid more stress on jobs creation and also proposed a 3-year freeze on government spending to tackle deficits and lead US economy to recovery.
Banks ended in positive territory. ANZ Bank added 0.87%, Commonwealth Bank of Australia advanced 0.86%, National Bank of Australia gained 1.48% and Westpac Banking Corp. rose 1.03%, Investment banker Macquarie Group, however, bucked the trend and ended in negative territory with a loss of 0.62%.
Mining and metal stocks also advanced on optimism about recovery. BHP Billiton advanced 0.99%, Fortescue Metals climbed 2.20%, Iluka Resources gained 2.72%, Macarthur Coal added 0.79%, Minara Resources surged up 3.68% and Rio Tinto increased 2.20%. However, Gindalbie Metals declined 0.99% and Oz Minerals declined 1.33%.
Mixed trading was witnessed among oil stocks. Woodside Petroleum advanced 1.58% and Santos added 0.46%. However, Oil Search declined 1.11% and Origin Energy lost 0.98%.
Retail stocks also ended mixed. David Jones added 0.21%, Harvey Norman climbed 3.51% and JB Hi-Fi Ltd rose 1.50%. However, Wesfarmers declined 1.40% and Woolworths lost 2.28%.
Gold stocks ended in negative territory on weaker gold prices. Lihir Gold shed 1.03% and Newcrest Mining slipped 0.53%.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index snapped its recent losses and ended in positive territory with a gain of 323.30 points, or 1.61%, at 20,356, as traders resorted to bargain hunting at lower levels taking cues from Wall Street where the major averages ended in positive territory on Fed's positive comments about the economy. Positive trading across other markets in the region also lifted market sentiment. Banks, property stocks and china-related stocks advanced as traders evinced fresh buying interest at lower levels. As many as 32 of the 42 components of the index ended in positive territory led by banks.
In South Korea, the KOSPI Index ended in positive territory with a gain of 16.95 points, or 1.04%, at 1,642, taking cues from Wall Street where the major averages ended in positive territory in the previous session lifted by positive comments from Federal Reserve at the conclusion of its 2-day FOMC meeting. President Barack Obama's speech at his State of Union Address, where he pledged to create more jobs, and positive trading across other markets in the region also lifted market sentiment, as traders went on bargain hunting at lower levels.
The Indian market finished Thursday's volatile session flat, although with a positive bias. While short covering on account of January series F&O expiry and strong global cues offered support, the market pared gains in the second half of the session ahead of Friday's interest rate decision. With the market breadth remaining extremely weak, analysts termed the modest rise as a technical bounce back. The benchmark Sensex moved between 16,525 and 16,182 before finishing at 16,307, up 17 points or 0.10% and the Nifty rose 14 points or 0.29% to 4,867.
Among other major markets open for trading in the region, Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index gaomed 55.01 points, or 2.15% to close at 2,620, Taiwan's Weighted Index climbed 134.55 points, or 1.78% to close at 7,695, Strait Times Index in Singapore rose 51.42 points, or 1.90%, to close at 2,758 and China's Shanghai Composite Index added 7.54 points, or 0.25%, to close at 2,994.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.