Weak dollar puts Japan in the red
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SingTel was one of the big movers on Asian bourses Monday, despite falls registered on Japan's Nikkei.
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(CNN) -- Japanese stocks closed in negative territory Monday as investor hopes for a stronger dollar in the aftermath of a weekend Group of Seven meeting proved forlorn.
But Japan was the only Asian market to finish in arrears. South Korea and Hong Kong led the bullish sentiment for the day, while Australia remained characteristically cautious yet optimistic.
The dollar again moved backwards against the yen, dropping to 105.94-97 yen, down from its Friday close of 106.14-16 yen.
The Australian currency was also stronger against the greenback, leaping 1.5c to 77.56c.
Japanese investors, concerned at the effect of a strong dollar on the earnings of Japanese exporters, had hoped to see a greenback rally after positive comments from the Group of Seven Finance Ministers meeting in Florida. (Full story)
Instead they saw the dollar again retreat, persuading them to sell.
Richard Jerram, Tokyo-based chief economist for ING Asia, told CNN he thought the dollar did not have "that much further to fall".
He said renewed growth in Europe and Japan will help cut the size of the U.S. current account deficit.
Tokyo traders were unconvinced. The benchmark Nikkei 225 average closed down 0.56 percent at 10,402.61, adding to last week's 2.99 percent fall.
The broader Topix index slipped 0.39 percent to 1,024.77.
NTT DoCoMo, one of Japan's largest companies by market capitalization, was down 1.84 percent at 213,000 yen, contributing to the Nikkei's fall. DoCoMo rival KDDI Corp fell 1.52 percent to 582,000 yen.
Auto shares declined despite the outcome of the G7 meeting. Industry leader Toyota Motor fell 1.13 percent to 3,510 yen while No.2 Honda Motor sagged 0.45 percent to 4,430 yen.
Some technology shares also eased. Fujitsu slipped 1.08 percent to 644 yen and Kyocera Corp was down 0.41 percent at 7,230 yen.
Shares in Kanebo, Japan's number two cosmetic maker, surged after a fund reportedly offered $3.8 billion to buy its key unit, setting up a potential bidding war with rival suitor Kao Corp. Kanebo Ltd. moved 12.93 percent higher.
In Seoul, the Kospi closed 1.71 percent higher at 863.3. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics helped lead the way with a gain of 3.04 percent to 543,000 won.
Big exporter Hyundai Motor closed 4.6 percent ahead to 48,900 won.
The Taiex made good progress, ending 1.73 percent higher at 6463.09 points. Taiwan Semiconductor registered a 3.17 percent advance to trade at T$64.50.
The Hang Seng continued its bullish sentiment from late last week, rising 1.6 percent to 13,522.80 just before its close.
PCCW is a big winner, up 4.13 percent to HK$6.25. Hutchison Whampoa was also moving in the right direction, 1.55 percent higher to HK$65.25.
Stronger sentiment for telecommunications and airlines has driven Singapore's Straits Times index 0.93 percent higher to 1871.59.
Singapore Airlines is 2.63 percent higher and Singapore Telecommunications was ahead 1.86 percent just before the bourse closed.
In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed 0.46 percent higher at 3287.1.
The market opened at its highest point of the day, boosted by a Friday night rally on Wall Street, but lost ground throughout the day.
Brewing giant Foster's was down 0.5 percent after announcing CEO Ted Kunkel will step down later this year, ending the day at A$4.31. (Full story)
Brokers used Monday to prepare for a major reporting week from some of the blue chip companies.
Market heavyweight News Corp moved up 1.91 percent to $11.87.
Mining giants BHP Billiton firmed 0.61 percent to $11.48 and Rio Tinto added 0.23 percent to $35.32.
In the banking sector, National Australia Bank increased 0.46 percent to A$30.57, the ANZ gained 0.4 percent to A$17.72, Westpac inched up 0.8 percent to $16.47 and St George Bank finished 0.25 percent higher at $19.87.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) rose 0.92 percent to $30.87.
The moves in Asia follow a strong finish on Wall Street Friday, with the Nasdaq jumping 2.2 percent and the Dow putting on almost 1 percent to 10,593.03. (Full story)
