8:30AM HK, Taiwan gain, China surges and Japan falls in Asia.

Asian markets ended mixed on Tuesday.

In Tokyo, Japanese stocks declined with insurance companies such as Millea Holdings Inc. and power producers after a magnitude 6.8 earthquake shook northwest Japan yesterday, damaging a nuclear reactor. Millea Holdings lost 1.7%, Sompo Japan Insurance finished 2.3% lower, and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance shed 2.1%. Sumitomo, the third-largest trading house, in the country, climbed 2.7% and Cosmo Oil, the fourth-biggest refiner in Japan, surged 2.5%. The Nikkei 225 Average closed 0.1% lower at 18,217.27.

In Hong Kong, the market rose for the third time in four days. The benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 0.5% to close at 23,057.30. Cnooc Ltd. climbed after Deutsche Bank AG raised share-price estimates for oil producers and crude oil hovered near an 11-month high. Cnooc, surged 3% and PetroChina, the largest oil producer in China, added 0.7%. Industrial & Commercial Bank, the biggest lender in China, added 2.1%.

In Taiwan, the Taiex index gained 1%. Taiwan Cement, the biggest maker of the building material on the island, advanced 4.4% and Cathay Financial, the largest life insurer, rose 4.2%. The national benchmark target was raised by UBS on better corporate earnings and a shift by investors from bonds and property toward stocks as interest rates increase.

In China, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index soared 1.9% to close at 3,896.19. Property developers surged following the appreciation of the yuan and banks gained on a stable earnings outlook for the sector. Beijing Tianhong Baoye Real Estate surged up to its limit, ended 10% higher. Shenzhen Development Bank followed other local lenders in its guidance of strong first-half earnings. Shenzhen Development Bank jumped 9.8%, Industrial Bank closed 9.6% higher and China Merchants Bank rose 6%.

In Sydney, the index S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.01% to 6,381.60. Mining company Rio Tinto gained 0.4%, bouncing back from losses recently triggered by worries it may be overpaying for Alcan.

The market in Seoul was closed for national holiday.

7:30AM NY – 6:30 PM Mumbai Sensex closes 21 points lower, Reliance surges.

The Sensex on BSE finished 21.40 points lower Tuesday, or 0.14%, at 15,289.82.

The benchmark index opened 47 points higher and hit an intra-day high of 15,440.20 in morning deals. The intra-day low was 15,272.46, struck in the early afternoon.

The market-breadth turned negative in the latter part of trading. Out of 2,733 stocks traded on BSE, 977 advanced, 1,696 declined and 60 were unchanged. Of the 30 stocks in the Sensex, 11 advanced, while all the rest declined.

The turnover on BSE was Rs 6,023 crore, higher than Rs 5,392 crore on Monday. On NSE, the turnover was Rs 12,729 crore, higher than Rs 11,519 crore on Monday.

Economic news

Ford Motor Co., the second-largest U.S. automaker, is likely sell a small car model in India. Small cars and compact hatchbacks account for three-fourths of the Indian market. Ford is targeting broadening its product range in India from sedans and sport-utility vehicles.

Trading highlights

Indiabulls Real Estate was the most active stock with a turnover of Rs 403.60 crore followed by Indiabulls and DLF.

Advancers of the Day

The process of infrastructure boom lifted cement stocks. Cement major Ambuja Cement advanced 3.1% to Rs 137 and was the best performer on BSE. Other cement stocks also gained. JK Cement was up 1% to Rs 156, Birla Corporation added 0.9% to Rs 294 and Madras Cement advanced 1.2% to Rs 3,540.

Index heavy Reliance Industries surged to a record high of Rs 1,834 on reports it had made a gas discovery in the Cauvery basin. It settled 2.9% higher to Rs 1,827.