Stocks were mixed in Asia at the end of Thursday, as investors mulled fresh data including slowing economic growth in South Korea.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.32% at 27,345.24, as the yen strengthened 0.04% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 146.31.
Robotics specialist Fanuc was up 0.34%, Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing added 0.89%, and tech investing giant SoftBank Group was 0.93% firmer.
The broader Topix index was 0.66% weaker by the end of trading in Tokyo, settling at 1,905.56.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.55% at 2,982.90, and the technology-centric Shenzhen Component was off 0.63% at 10,750.14.
Industrial profits in China fell 2.3% year-on-year in the first nine months of the year, according to fresh data out of Beijing, accelerating slightly from the 2.1% fall in the year to August.
The National Bureau of Statistics said profits at manufacturing companies were particularly weak, falling 13.2% over the period.
“The poor global economic outlook will have a larger impact on private sector and foreign-invested firms, as they are more exposed to exports than state-owned enterprises,” said Duncan Wrigley at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
“We are also fairly pessimistic about domestic demand prospects, and expect a drawn-out property sector recovery and zero-Covid policy to remain in place until at least mid-2023.
“This means policy-supported sectors will continue as the bright spot in industrial profits.”
South Korea’s Kospi added 1.74% to 2,288.78, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong managed gains of 0.72% to 15,427.94.
Fresh data out of Seoul showed Korea’s GDP rising 0.3% quarter-on-quarter in the three months through September, making for the slowest quarterly growth in a year.
That was down from the 0.7% growth reported for the June quarter.
On the year, meanwhile, GDP growth accelerated slightly to 3.1%, from the 2.9% recorded in the second quarter.
Korea’s blue-chip technology stocks were mixed, with SK Hynix tumbling 4.15%, while Samsung Electronics eked out gains of 0.17%.
The moves for Samsung came after the company recorded a 31.39% year-on-year plunge in third quarter profits, broadly in line with its previous estimate of a 32% fall.
Oil prices were firmer as the region went to bed, with Brent crude futures last up 0.17% on ICE at $95.85 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate ahead 0.02% at $87.93 on NYMEX.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.5% firmer at 6,845.10, while across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 advanced 0.49% to 11,100.52.
The down under dollars were both weaker against the greenback, with the Aussie last off 0.54% at AUD 1.5475, and the Kiwi retreating 0.34% to NZD 1.7198.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
