Asian stocks ended the week on an uptrend, with the regional index pointing to the largest weekly increase since last April. Banks, brokerage firms and energy stocks led the race.
The MSCI Asia Pacific index was up 0,4% to 136.63 at 1:06pm in Tokyo, recovering from an earlier dip. The measure has gained 2,9% since March 21. The Japanese Topix rose simultaneously by 0,1% (after losing up to 0,7%) on the news that in Japan consumer prices excluding fresh food increased by 1,3% in February compared to the same month in 2013 and that is before the sales tax hike takes effect in April. South Korea's Kospi and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 were both up 0,3%, while New Zealand's NZX 50 Index was little changed. Chinese stocks were particularly strong: Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 0,8%, while Mainland China's Hang Seng China Enterprises rose 1,3% and the Shanghai Composite Index rallied + 0,6 percent.
The regional index fell 3,7% from this year to yesterday amid concerns stemming from the crisis in Ukraine, the health of the US economy, and the decline in Chinese growth.
“Investors remain unsure about Ukraine and China. They also wonder how strong the US economy will be when the Fed's stimulus ends and what will happen in Japan on the inflation front,” said Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors in Sydney. “All these factors of uncertainty hold back investors and cause tangled movements in the stock markets.”
On the stocks front, Sino-Ocean Land Holdings, a real estate company rose 4,6% in Hong Kong, driving higher the MSCI Asia Pacific Financials Index. Automaker Brilliance China Automotive Holdings jumped 6,9% after reporting a 47% increase in annual net revenue. Finally, Yahoo Japan jumped 8,9% after agreeing to buy eAccess for 324 billion yen from parent company SoftBank Corp.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-28/asian-stocks-swing-index-heading-for-weekly-gain.html
