Asia markets fall; strong yen hits Tokyo

Television crew stand in front of a share price board of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Japanese stocks tumbled by 538.94 points to 19,520.01 yesterday.AFP/TokyoMost Asian stock markets sank yesterday after US growth data fell well short of forecasts, with the dollar around two-month lows against the euro as the chances of an interest rate hike in early summer faded. The single currency was also supported by hopes Greece will reach a bailout reform deal with its creditors. Tokyo tumbled 2.69%, or 538.94 points, to 19,520.01 as exporters were hit by the stronger yen, while Shanghai fell 0.78%, or 34.97 points, to 4,441.65. Hong Kong shed 0.94%, or 267.34 points, to 28,133Sydney slipped 0.83%, or 48.6 points, to close at 5,790 - its third-straight day of declines—while Seoul fell 0.72%, or 15.46 points, to end at 2,127.17. In other markets, Bangkok closed up 0.28%, or 4.27 points, to 1,526.74; supermarket operator Big C Supercenter lost 2.20% to 222baht, while Bangkok Bank added 1.09% to 185baht. Kuala Lumpur’s main index slipped 1.34%, or 24.66 points, to close at 1,818.27; Cycle & Carriage Bintang gained 1.32% to close at 2.30 ringgit while Public Bank ended 1.12% lower at 19.48 ringgit. Telekom Malaysia fell 0.80% to 7.41 ringgit. Jakarta ended down 0.38%, or 19.14 points, at 5,086.43; retailer Hero Supermarket gained 4.44% to 1,880 rupiah, while auto maker Astra International slipped 3.52% to 6,850 rupiah. Singapore rose 0.01%, or 0.24 points, to 3,487.39; Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp declined 1.84% to Sg$10.68 while Singapore Telecom fell 0.23% to Sg$4.43. Taipei fell 0.34%, or 33.78 points, to 9,820.05; Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co shed 1.01% to Tw$147.0 while Hon Hai was 0.11% lower at Tw$92.0. Wellington rose 0.88%, or 50.52 points, to 5,791.34; Fletcher Building was up 1.22% at NZ$8.31 and Trade Me gained 0.26% to NZ$3.82. Manila sank 1.41%, or 110.65 points, to 7,714.82; Banco de Oro was 0.91% lower at 109 pesos while Philippine Long Distance Telephone fell 3.12% to 2,798 pesos but Metrobank closed 0.54% higher at 93.50 pesos. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the US economy grew at an annualised rate of 0.2% in January-February, far short of the 1.0% projected by analysts. The result is the latest indicating weakness in the world’s number one economy. Later in the day the US Federal Reserve said the slowdown was due “in part” to transitory factors and expansion should continue at a “moderate pace”. That suggested the Fed still expects to begin a slow series of rate rises in the coming months, though not likely in June as many analysts had been expecting until recently. “The jury is still out on whether the weakness points to a more structural slowdown in the economy,” Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners, told Bloomberg News. “While plenty of people are expecting the rate hike to be pushed back even to 2016, it’s important to watch the next piece of economic news to gauge whether the weakness we’ve seen was a one-off or the beginning of a trend.” The news pushed Wall Street’s main indexes lower. The Dow shed 0.41%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.37% and the Nasdaq fell 0.63%. The dollar also came under further pressure as the likelihood of a rate hike, which tends to lift the currency, slimmed. The greenback was at ¥118.80 yesterday, slipping from ¥119.02 in New York. A decision by the Bank of Japan to stand pat on monetary policy also provided yen support.