China Leads Gains in Asia Markets with Aussie Shares Holding Near 2-Year Highs; Japan Falls
China and Hong Kong markets led a rally in Asia stocks on Thursday, while Australia shares closed near two-year highs.
China’s CSI 300 index jumped 2.4%, extending gains to the second day.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index climbed 2.6%, also rising for the second day. Hong Kong is still the worst performing large Asia-Pacific market in 2023, down some 14%.
All major Hang Seng sectors were higher by afternoon trading.
Markets including Australia and Hong Kong resumed trading Wednesday after a Christmas break, both ending higher, while China stocks were buoyed by a rebound in online gaming stocks.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index closed 0.70% higher at 7,614.30, at its highest level since late April 2022. The index is set to end the year higher at 7.7%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended down 0.42% at 33,539.62, after closing more than 1% higher in the previous session. The broader Topix index closed down 0.14% at 2,362.02, cooling off after four straight sessions of gains.
Retail sales data from Japan showed a 5.3% growth in November, higher than a Reuters poll forecast of 5%.
South Korea’s Kospi was 1.29% higher, building on gains from the previous session. The small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.73%.
TICKER | COMPANY | NAME | PRICE | CHANGE | %CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.N225 | Nikkei 225 Index | *NIKKEI | 33539.62 | -141.62 | -0.42 |
.HSI | Hang Seng Index | *HSI | 17060.54 | 435.7 | 2.62 |
.AXJO | S&P/ASX 200 | *ASX 200 | 7614.3 | 53.1 | 0.7 |
.SSEC | Shanghai | *SHANGHAI | 2952.32 | 37.71 | 1.29 |
.KS11 | KOSPI Index | *KOSPI | 2655.28 | 41.78 | 1.6 |
.FTFCNBCA | CNBC 100 ASIA IDX | *CNBC 100 | 8804.98 | 116.17 | 1.34 |
Overnight, U.S. stocks finished higher Wednesday as traders kept an eye on the S&P 500′s march toward record levels.
The S&P 500 inched up 0.14%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.16%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 111.19 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 37,656.52.
The Dow notched a fresh closing high, while the S&P 500 finished less than 0.5% off of its closing record of 4,796.56 set in January 2022. Along with the Dow and Nasdaq, the S&P is also enjoying an eight-week winning streak — its longest since 2017.
Home prices in Hong Kong have slumped this year, falling to their lowest since 2017. But analysts say the property market may fair better in 2024.
“Next year will sound better as a result of the potential rate cuts from the U.S. ... market sentiment will improve and then transaction volume will start to pick up in the second half of next year,” Marcos Chan, head of research at CBRE Hong Kong told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”
Although demand for residential properties in Hong Kong may pick up in 2024, the property market will not see a “very strong V-shaped rebound,” Chan added.
If interest rates finally start to come down and the renminbi strengthens in the next 12 to 18 months, he said property prices could tick up a couple percentage points.
Chan also noted that Hong Kong’s commercial property market is likely to remain weak, as office vacancy remains high. Hong Kong’s office market logged a 15.8% vacancy rate and 13.6 million square feet of vacant space in the third quarter, according to a report by CBRE.
Hereby, Hong Kong’s residential properties will probably perform better than commercial land next year, Chan said.
— Quek Jie Ann