Investing.com – Asian stocks were mostly lower on Thursday, as ongoing concerns over the euro zone’s debt crisis weighed on market sentiment, while shares in Japanese banks advanced after the nation’s banking industry received a broker upgrade.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.26%, South Korea's Kospi Composite shed 0.41%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index eased up 0.01%.
Shares in the commodity sector performed poorly after metal and crude oil prices retreated. Shares in Japan’s largest commodity broker Mitsui & Co. tumbled 1.18%, oil driller Japan Petroleum Exploration Company saw shares slump 0.42%, while metal producer Mitsui Mining & Smelting saw shares drop 0.47%.
Meanwhile, shares in the financial sector were broadly higher after Nomura Holdings maintained a “buy” rating on Japanese banks, citing their low valuations.
Shares in the nation’s largest lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group jumped 1.40%, rivals Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group saw shares rally 2.22%, while shares in Japan’s third biggest bank Mizuho Financial Group surged 2.74%.
Elsewhere, shares in the world’s largest tiremaker Bridgestone tumbled 1.64% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to “equal- weight”.
Meanwhile, shares in DeNA, a maker of game software for handsets soared 9.90% after it said it won a contract to supply Samsung Electronics with its social-gaming platform.
Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.34% as shares in the nation’s second largest airliner Virgin Blue jumped 5.88% after Australia's competition watchdog granted conditional approval to the carrier's proposed merger with Air New Zealand.
The outlook for European equity markets, meanwhile, was modestly downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a drop of 0.02%, France’s CAC 40 futures indicated a loss of 0.03%, the FTSE 100 futures pointed to a decrease of 0.06%, while Germany's DAX futures were down 0.03%.
Later in the day, EU leaders were to meet in Brussels for a 2-day summit to discuss the next step in dealing with the euro zone’s debt crisis.
Meanwhile, the U.S. was to publish a key weekly report on initial jobless claims, as well as data on building permits, housing starts and manufacturing activity in Philadelphia.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.26%, South Korea's Kospi Composite shed 0.41%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index eased up 0.01%.
Shares in the commodity sector performed poorly after metal and crude oil prices retreated. Shares in Japan’s largest commodity broker Mitsui & Co. tumbled 1.18%, oil driller Japan Petroleum Exploration Company saw shares slump 0.42%, while metal producer Mitsui Mining & Smelting saw shares drop 0.47%.
Meanwhile, shares in the financial sector were broadly higher after Nomura Holdings maintained a “buy” rating on Japanese banks, citing their low valuations.
Shares in the nation’s largest lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group jumped 1.40%, rivals Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group saw shares rally 2.22%, while shares in Japan’s third biggest bank Mizuho Financial Group surged 2.74%.
Elsewhere, shares in the world’s largest tiremaker Bridgestone tumbled 1.64% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to “equal- weight”.
Meanwhile, shares in DeNA, a maker of game software for handsets soared 9.90% after it said it won a contract to supply Samsung Electronics with its social-gaming platform.
Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.34% as shares in the nation’s second largest airliner Virgin Blue jumped 5.88% after Australia's competition watchdog granted conditional approval to the carrier's proposed merger with Air New Zealand.
The outlook for European equity markets, meanwhile, was modestly downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a drop of 0.02%, France’s CAC 40 futures indicated a loss of 0.03%, the FTSE 100 futures pointed to a decrease of 0.06%, while Germany's DAX futures were down 0.03%.
Later in the day, EU leaders were to meet in Brussels for a 2-day summit to discuss the next step in dealing with the euro zone’s debt crisis.
Meanwhile, the U.S. was to publish a key weekly report on initial jobless claims, as well as data on building permits, housing starts and manufacturing activity in Philadelphia.