Hong Kong — Asian markets were mostly lower
Tuesday following losses in New York as dealers took profits from recent
advances while also seeking fresh catalysts.
Tokyo was also weighed by a rise in the yen, which has suffered heavy
selling in recent weeks, while the South Korean bourse slipped on
disappointment over the latest earnings guidance from Samsung
Electronics.
Tokyo slipped 0.86 percent, or
90.95 points, lower at 10,508.06, Sydney lost 0.57 percent, or 27.1
points, to close at 4,690.2 and Seoul was 0.66 percent lower, shedding
13.31 points to 1,997.94.
In the afternoon Hong Kong lost 0.64 percent and Shanghai was 0.47 percent lower.
With the US fiscal crisis out of the way until talks next month on
raising the country's borrowing limit and cutting spending, eyes are now
on the upcoming earnings season and economic indicators.
"We could be in a no man's land between the fiscal cliff and [the
debate around] the debt ceiling," said Sean Callow, senior currency
strategist at Westpac Institutional Bank in Sydney.
China is due to unveil several batches of data over the coming week,
including on trade, inflation and gross domestic product, with most
economists upbeat following a series of results suggesting the economy
is picking up strength.
However, Wall Street
provided a negative lead owing to caution ahead of the start of the
corporate reporting season later Tuesday.
In Tokyo the Nikkei fell as the yen picked up slightly against the
dollar and euro, although analysts said its relative weakness should
continue to provide support.
"The market remains
overheated after running up so much over the past several weeks, making
it vulnerable to more selling," SMBC Nikko Securities general manager
of equities Hiroichi Nishi told Dow Jones Newswires.
"Currency levels remain somewhat supportive... so this should hold any sharp sell-offs in check," Nishi said.
The dollar stood at ¥87.48, from ¥87.89 on Monday afternoon in New
York, where it last week surged to a peak of ¥88.41, its highest since
July 2010. The euro bought $1.3125 and ¥114.83 , from $1.3115 and
¥115.09 in New York.
Seoul's Kospi was dragged
lower by heavyweight Samsung Electronics, which fell 1.3 percent as it
disappointed traders despite forecasting a record operating profit of
$8.8 billion for the three months to the end of December.
"Investors appear concerned that Samsung may not show a better
performance in the first quarter, with some of them taking profit," said
Hyundai Securities analyst Bae Sung-Young.
Oil
prices was mixed, with New York's main contract, light sweet crude for
delivery in February, up one cent to $93.20 a barrel in the afternoon
while Brent North Sea crude for February delivery gained two cents to
$111.42.
Gold was at $1,649. at 0630 GMT compared with $1,654.50 late Monday.
In other markets:
Taipei fell 0.43 percent, or 33.43 points, to 7,721.66. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. was 0.80 percent lower at Tw$99.7 while leading smartphone maker HTC lost 3.99 percent to Tw$276.5.Wellington rose 0.14 percent, or 5.53 points, to 4,090.37. Telecom added 2.3 percent to NZ$2.23, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was up 1.7 percent at NZ$2.47 and Metlifecare surged 4.4 percent to end at NZ$3.35.
— Agence France-Presse
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