This story is available exclusively to Business Insider
subscribers. Become an Insider
and start reading now.Have an account? .
Forexpros – Asian stock markets were broadly higher on Monday, as market sentiment improved after better-than-expected Japanese economic data and strong U.S. retail sales figures helped ease fears over the global economy.<br /><br />During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged 2.5%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index jumped 2.6%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose 1.4%.<br /><br />Preliminary data released earlier in the day showed that Japan’s economy contracted by 0.3% in the second quarter, or 1.3% on an annualized basis.<br /><br />Analysts had expected Japan’s economy to contract by 0.9% in the quarter, or 2.5% on an annualized basis.<br /><br />Meanwhile, government data released Friday showed that U.S. retail sales rose by 0.5% in July, the biggest gain in four months.<br /><br />Shares in Japanese exporters with high exposure to the U.S. performed strongly, amid an upbeat outlook for export earnings.<br /><br />Consumer electronics giant Sony saw shares rally 3.95%, plasma television maker Panasonic rose 1.5%, while automakers Honda and Toyota saw shares gain 3.4% and 2.9% respectively. <br /><br />In Hong Kong, shares in the beaten-up financial sector led gains, as investors sought for bargains following sharp declines last week. <br /><br />China Construction Bank saw shares jump 3.4%, shares in Bank of China Hong Kong rallied 5.1%, China’s largest lender Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rose 3.5%, while shares in insurance provider Ping An soared 8.6%. <br /><br />Exporters also posted healthy gains, with Li & Fung, the world’s biggest supplier of toys to major U.S. retailers, surging 5.7%, while shares in Esprit Holdings, the Hong Kong-based retailer that counts Europe as its largest market rose 5.4%.<br /><br />Elsewhere, Australia’s biggest construction company Leighton Holdings saw shares jump 8.25% in Sydney after reiterating that it expected to return to an annual profit in 2012. The company reported a AUD409 million loss for the fiscal year ending June 30 earlier in the day. <br /><br />The outlook for European stock markets was upbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 1.2%, France’s CAC 40 futures rose 1.1%, the FTSE 100 futures climbed 1%, while Germany's DAX futures indicated a strong gain of 1.5%.<br /><br />Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce official data on manufacturing activity in New York State and a report on the balance of domestic and foreign investment in the U.S.<br /><br />
Forexpros - Forex Pros offers a diverse set of professional tools for Forex, Futures and CFDs. These include real-time data streams, technical and fundamental analysis by in-house experts, and a widely used economic calendar and Forex News.
