WELLINGTON, March 18 (Reuters) - Asian stocks will probably
rebound on Friday as investors look for bargains after the
savage sell down this week, although persistent fears about
Japan's nuclear crisis and Middle East turmoil are likely to
keep trading volatile in the near term.
Shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Japan's biggest bourse, were lower on Thursday, albeit they closed off their lows for a relatively modest 1.4 percent decline.
However, market barometers suggest some level of recovery, with the iShares MSCI Japan Index exchange traded fund, or EWJ , closing up 4.7 percent. Nikkei futures traded in Chicago closed up 4.2 percent, just 40 points below the Osaka close.
So far this week the Nikkei has fallen nearly 11 percent.
Wall Street's main indexes bounced back after three days of losses, rising between 0.7 percent and 1.4 percent. But the uncertainty caused by Japan's nuclear crisis has seen traders increasing hedges against further falls.
The CBOE Volatility Index VIX, Wall Street's fear gauge, fell 10.3 percent to 26.37 as stocks rose, but the VIX was still high compared with the recent average of about 20.
Asian stocks listed on Wall Street rose 2.3 percent, while U.S.-listed shares of Japanese companies declined and the index of leading Japanese American Depositary Receipts gained 3.3 percent.
The yen eased away from record levels against the dollar ahead of a conference call by Group of Seven finance ministers from 2200 GMT, with fears abounding that authorities will intervene to keep the yen's rise in check.
British stocks and European both bounced around 1.8 percent, snapping a six session losing streak, with energy stocks boosted by higher oil prices.
Australian stocks are also seen bouncing back on improved metals prices and bargain hunting. Share price index futures are up 0.4 percent at 4,575 a 19.7 point premium to the close of the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index.
HEADLINES: > Tokyo plays down joint G7 yen move, may act alone > Stocks rebound despite Japan worry, yen off highs > ADRs jump as Asian companies rebound after selloff > Glencore set for late call on listing as IPOs tumb > Japan's quake: mistakes, misfortune, meltdown > Energy lifts US inflation, jobless claims decline > How investors turned the tables on hedge funds > Five banks in Libor manipulation probe - source > Why Japan will avert a fiscal calamity > Green buying binge after Japan crisis won't last > Nike quarterly profit misses view as margins fall > FedEx offers strong outlook, sending shares higher > Japan dumps water on reactor; tries to repower > Japan retailers rocked by quake, aftermath > HK IPOs suffer setbacks on Japan quake concerns
- -
KEY INDEXES pct change
Bank of New York Asia ADR index +2.34
Dow Jones Industrial Average +1.39
Nasdaq Composite Index +0.73
Nikkei futures in Chicago 8,890
Nikkei futures in Osaka 8,930
TOP ASIA EVENTS:
For more Asian company earnings, see ASIA/EQTY
JAPAN - Bank of Japan minutes of Feb monetary meeting
- Finance Minister news conference
HONG KONG - ZTE Corporation final
reference news conference
- China Kingstone Mining Holdings Ltd
trading debut
AUSTRALIA - ANZ Bank update on medium/long term
strategy
(Reporting by Gyles Beckford; Editing by Ed Davies)
((gyles.beckford@reuters.com; +64-4-4714231; Reuters Messaging: gyles.beckford.reuters.com@reuters.net)) For top Asian company news, double click on: U.S. company news European company news U.S. weekly outlook European weekly outlook Forex news Global Economy news Tech/Telecoms/Media Banking news Political/General news Asia Macro data ASIA STOCK MARKETS: Pan-Asia........ Japan....... S.Korea... S.E. Asia....... Hong Kong... Taiwan.... Australia/NZ.... India....... China..... DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary/data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Hong Kong diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Asian Stocks Dow Jones/NASDAQ / Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Currency rates Keywords: MARKETS ASIA/ (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Japan's biggest bourse, were lower on Thursday, albeit they closed off their lows for a relatively modest 1.4 percent decline.
However, market barometers suggest some level of recovery, with the iShares MSCI Japan Index exchange traded fund, or EWJ , closing up 4.7 percent. Nikkei futures traded in Chicago closed up 4.2 percent, just 40 points below the Osaka close.
So far this week the Nikkei has fallen nearly 11 percent.
Wall Street's main indexes bounced back after three days of losses, rising between 0.7 percent and 1.4 percent. But the uncertainty caused by Japan's nuclear crisis has seen traders increasing hedges against further falls.
The CBOE Volatility Index VIX, Wall Street's fear gauge, fell 10.3 percent to 26.37 as stocks rose, but the VIX was still high compared with the recent average of about 20.
Asian stocks listed on Wall Street rose 2.3 percent, while U.S.-listed shares of Japanese companies declined and the index of leading Japanese American Depositary Receipts gained 3.3 percent.
The yen eased away from record levels against the dollar ahead of a conference call by Group of Seven finance ministers from 2200 GMT, with fears abounding that authorities will intervene to keep the yen's rise in check.
British stocks and European both bounced around 1.8 percent, snapping a six session losing streak, with energy stocks boosted by higher oil prices.
Australian stocks are also seen bouncing back on improved metals prices and bargain hunting. Share price index futures are up 0.4 percent at 4,575 a 19.7 point premium to the close of the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index.
HEADLINES: > Tokyo plays down joint G7 yen move, may act alone > Stocks rebound despite Japan worry, yen off highs > ADRs jump as Asian companies rebound after selloff > Glencore set for late call on listing as IPOs tumb > Japan's quake: mistakes, misfortune, meltdown > Energy lifts US inflation, jobless claims decline > How investors turned the tables on hedge funds > Five banks in Libor manipulation probe - source > Why Japan will avert a fiscal calamity > Green buying binge after Japan crisis won't last > Nike quarterly profit misses view as margins fall > FedEx offers strong outlook, sending shares higher > Japan dumps water on reactor; tries to repower > Japan retailers rocked by quake, aftermath > HK IPOs suffer setbacks on Japan quake concerns
- -
KEY INDEXES pct change
Bank of New York Asia ADR index +2.34
Dow Jones Industrial Average +1.39
Nasdaq Composite Index +0.73
Nikkei futures in Chicago 8,890
Nikkei futures in Osaka 8,930
TOP ASIA EVENTS:
For more Asian company earnings, see ASIA/EQTY
JAPAN - Bank of Japan minutes of Feb monetary meeting
- Finance Minister news conference
HONG KONG - ZTE Corporation final
reference news conference
- China Kingstone Mining Holdings Ltd
trading debut
AUSTRALIA - ANZ Bank update on medium/long term
strategy
(Reporting by Gyles Beckford; Editing by Ed Davies)
((gyles.beckford@reuters.com; +64-4-4714231; Reuters Messaging: gyles.beckford.reuters.com@reuters.net)) For top Asian company news, double click on: U.S. company news European company news U.S. weekly outlook European weekly outlook Forex news Global Economy news Tech/Telecoms/Media Banking news Political/General news Asia Macro data ASIA STOCK MARKETS: Pan-Asia........ Japan....... S.Korea... S.E. Asia....... Hong Kong... Taiwan.... Australia/NZ.... India....... China..... DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary/data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Hong Kong diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Asian Stocks Dow Jones/NASDAQ / Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Currency rates Keywords: MARKETS ASIA/ (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.