The last session this week brought the most indexes decreases in the Asian and Pacific region, which were most pronounced in companies from the energy sector. The reason for this was a strong reduction in the price of oil, whose price yesterday dropped to nearly 76 dollars a barrel and now is half a percent below the levels of last Friday. Stock exchanges in China are ranked among the few in the region, which ended today’s trading increases. The reason for that speculation arose that the Chinese yuan may gain. Shanghai Composite stock index added 0.5 percent to 3187.7 points and increase its value by 0.8 percent against the closing level of last Friday. More and more analysts expect that the Chinese government will increase the fixed rate of the yuan against the dollar. From July 2008 to date U.S. dollar exchanged for 6.83 yuan. Dollar-denominated B-shares on the Shanghai market segment rose due to expected growth in their profits due yuani appreciation of local currency. MSCI Asia Pacific, which covers the securities markets in ten Asian countries plus Australia and New Zealand, yielded a 0.1 percent to 117.69 points. Over the last five sessions of the regional stock measure was up 1.1 percent. The Exchange in Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell by 0.4 percent to 9770.3 points and reported a weekly decline of 0.2 percent. Today it became clear that the index of consumer confidence remains at a level of 40.5 points for the second consecutive month in October and failed to increase for the first time since the beginning of this year.
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The good news for sudden growth of Chinese economy in the third quarter failed to stop the sale of stock exchanges in Asia and the Pacific region. Instead, they strengthened fears that the Chinese central bank will soon need to raise the base interest rate, and the government to suspend its program to promote consumption. The regional index MSCI Asia Pacific, which monitors the securities markets in nine Asian countries plus Australia and New Zealand are lowered for the second straight day, losing 1.1 percent to 119.22 points. This is the strongest one-day decline in the stock measure from the beginning of this month and reduced his lead to five-year bottom of the beginning of March to 69 percent. Financial companies in the MSCI Asia Pacific contributed 39% of its fall today. Since the beginning of this year it has grown by 33% and outpaced the broad U.S. index, S & P 500 and the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600. The optimism of investors made a market valuation of companies in the MSCI Asia Pacific 1,6 times greater than their book value. The stock market in Shanghai, Shanghai Composite was down by 0.6 percent to 3051.4 points, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 0.5 percent to 22,210.5 points.
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Most indexes in Asia and the Pacific region rose today, which helped the regional MSCI Asia Pacific index to rise to its highest level in 13 months. Stock market optimism was fueled by unexpectedly good financial results of the technology giant Apple and speech to the Australian central bank that soon ahead of the new interest rate rises due to acceleration of the economy. MSCI Asia Pacific, which monitors stock markets in ten Asian countries, Australia and New Zealand, added 1.1 percent to 121.75 points. Stock measure is headed towards its highest closing level since the beginning of September 2008 and has grown by 72% compared to five years from its bottom in early March this year. Tech companies have contributed about 11 percent of today’s increase MSCI Asia Pacific. Since the beginning of this year the MSCI Asia Pacific increased by 36 per cent. Market valuation of companies involved in it averaged 23.5 times greater than their profit. For comparison, the price / earnings per share (P / E) for U.S. companies in the broader index S & P 500 amounted to 18.1 and for pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 ratio is 16. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 added 1 percent to 10,336.8 points, thereby deleting all your yesterday’s downgrade. Investor optimism took a better-than-expected financial results on tech company Apple and the second largest manufacturer of microprocessors in the U.S. Texas Instruments. In South Korea Kospi advanced 0.6 percent to 1659.2 points, a stock exchange of Hong Kong Hang Seng main index rose by 0.8 percent to 22,384.9 points.
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