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Asia Closes Mixed. Nikkei Declines On Weak Dollar |
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11:08 AM EDT May 11 2006 |
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Asian-Pacific benchmarks finished mixed Thursday. The Nikkei dropped for a third session in a row, pressured by strengthening yen versus the dollar and possible slowdown in Japanese corporate earnings as a result. The index fell 0.5% to 16,862.10 reflecting weakness in foreign-sales-dependent auto stocks and mixed banking shares. Toyota Motor announced 39% quarterly profit growth, but automakers declined as weaker dollar weighed. Shares of Toyota dropped 2.1%, while Nissan Motor lost 0.3%. Banking stocks lost some ground, despite 1.2% increase in Japan’s lending in April. China Shanghai Composite reversed from recent strength and dropped 0.5% as profit-taking overshadowed fund flows. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended up 0.4%, led by HSBC and China Mobil which recovered from recent weakness to advance 0.3% and 0.6% respectively. South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.9% reaching a record-high, supported by blue chips like Samsung Electronics and Posco. |
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