BANGKOK (AP) — Shares mostly advanced in Asia on Thursday after U.S. stocks rose following better-than-expected profit reports from Morgan Stanley, United Airlines and other big firms.
Chinese markets fell back after officials in Beijing announced the federal government was expanding financing for housing projects to attempt to turn around a slump within the property market triggered by a crackdown on excessive borrowing by developers.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index dropped 1% to twenty,082.63, while the Shanghai Composite index shed 1.1% to three,169.38.
China is attributable to announce its economic growth data for the April-September quarter on Friday. Economists are forecasting annual growth at about 4.5%, in need of the federal government’s goal of about 5%.
China’s leaders have promised more measures to assist boost the economy, but up to now haven’t provided details of stimulus on a scale that might satisfy investors hoping to see reforms which may address long run problems comparable to massive local debt and weak consumer demand.
Plans announced up to now amount to a “bailout” geared toward nurturing a gradual recovery as a substitute of a “V” shaped short-term rebound in prices, economists at ANZ Research said in a report.
“Without announcing a serious shift in housing policy stance, the policy measure is not going to induce massive investment demand in real estate,” the report said. Nevertheless it added that “The package of credit injection is an efficient measure to scale back the financial risks and liquidity crunch faced by the developers and the related supply chains, keeping off a subprime crisis in China.”
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.7% to 38,911.19 after the federal government reported Japan’s exports fell 1.7% from a 12 months earlier in September, widening the country’s trade deficit.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi slipped lower than 0.1% to 2,609.30 and in Australia the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.9% to eight,355.90.
Taiwan’s Taiex gained 0.2% and India’s Sensex was down 0.5%. In Thailand, the SET gained 0.6% a day after the central bank cut its key rate of interest by 1 / 4 of a percentage point, to 2.25%.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 picked up 0.5% to five,842.47 to get well much of the slide from its all-time high the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8%, to set a record at 43,077.70. The Nasdaq composite added 0.3% to 18,367.08.
Morgan Stanley rallied 6.4% after reporting stronger profit for the most recent quarter than analysts expected. CEO Ted Pick said the investment bank enjoyed a “constructive environment” in its businesses all over the world. And with stock prices near records, it’s managing even extra money for clients.
United Airlines flew 12.4% higher after reporting a milder drop in summer profit than expected and announcing plans to send as much as $1.5 billion to its shareholders by buying back its stock. J.B. Hunt Transport Services motored up by 3.1% after the freight company delivered better-than-expected results.
Energy stocks were holding steadier, including a 0.3% tick higher for Exxon Mobil, a day after sliding to a number of the market’s worst losses.
They’ve been generally following the value of oil, which has fallen back as worries recede that Israel will attack Iranian oil facilities as a part of its retaliation for Iran’s missile attack early this month. Iran is a serious producer of crude, and a strike could upend its exports to China and elsewhere. Concerns in regards to the strength of demand due to China’s flagging economic growth have also hit oil prices.
Early Wednesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil slipped 14 cents at $70.25 per barrel in electronic trading on the Latest York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 15 cents to $74.07 per barrel.
The dollar rose to 149.78 Japanese yen from 149.64 yen. The euro fell to $1.0859 from $1.0862.