CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Tuesday as upbeat economic data from China and Japan partially offset investor worries about the spread of coronavirus.
The world economy, with the likely exception of India and China, will go into recession this year with a predicted loss of trillions of dollars of global income due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a latest UN trade report.
Chinese stocks finished marginally higher as upbeat factory activity data raised hopes of an economic recovery following the coronavirus outbreak. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index inched up 3.08 points, or 0.11 percent, to 2,750.30, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.85 percent to 23,603.48.
The manufacturing sector in China moved back into expansion in March, the latest survey from the National Bureau of Statistics revealed with a PMI score of 52.0 - beating forecasts for 45.0. That's up sharply from 35.7 in February.
The non-manufacturing PMI came in at 52.3, also exceeding expectations for 42.0 and up from 29.6 in the previous month. The composite PMI posted a score of 53.0, up from 28.9 a month prior.
Japanese shares ended lower as investors digested a raft of economic data. The Nikkei average ended a choppy session down 167.96 points, or 0.88 percent, at 18,917.01. The broader Topix index closed 2.26 percent lower at 1,403.04 amid concerns about a possible lockdown in the Japanese capital.
Market heavyweight SoftBank rose 2.6 percent and Fast Retailing added 2 percent. Exporters Canon, Toyota Motor and Honda Motor fell 3-4 percent despite the dollar rising against the yen before the fiscal year end.
A government report showed that industrial production in Japan advanced a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent sequentially in February - beating forecasts for a flat reading following the 1.0 percent increase in January.
Retail sales in Japan gained a seasonally adjusted 0.6 percent in the month - beating forecasts for a decline of 1.7 percent, following the 1.5 percent increase in January.
The unemployment rate came in at a seasonally adjusted 2.4 percent to match expectations while housing starts declined for the eighth month in a row in the month.
Australian markets gave up early gains to end sharply lower for the day. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 ended down 104.06 points, or 2.02 percent, at 5,076.80 after rallying as much as 3.5 percent earlier in the day. The broader All Ordinaries index dropped 83.40 points, or 1.61 percent, to 5,110.60.
Mining heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto lost 3-4 percent. Gold miner Evolution Mining slumped 8.8 percent and Newcrest gave up 6 percent after gold prices extended losses for a second session overnight.
Wesfarmers plunged 4.5 percent. The retail conglomerate said it had sold a 5.2 percent stake in supermarket giant Coles Group and expects to record a pre-tax profit of A$130 million from the sale.
Banks ANZ, NAB and Westpac rose 1-2 percent while Commonwealth tumbled 3.3 percent. Oil Search, Santos and Woodside Petroleum rose 1-2 percent as oil rebounded from 18-year lows amid reports that U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to discuss stabilizing energy markets.
Seoul stocks posted strong gains on hopes for more government and central bank stimulus to minimize the fallout from the new coronavirus outbreak. The benchmark Kospi surged 37.52 points, or 2.19 percent, to close at 1,754.64.
Pharmaceutical firm Samsung BioLogics soared 7.1 percent and Celltrion jumped as much as 23.8 percent. Automaker Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors rose about 4 percent each.
Industrial production in South Korea dropped a seasonally adjusted 3.8 percent sequentially in February, Statistics Korea said - following the 1.3 percent decline in January. On a yearly basis, industrial production jumped 11.4 percent after sliding 2.6 percent in the previous month.
Separately, survey data from Bank of Korea showed that a measure of confidence among manufacturers decreased in March.
New Zealand shares advanced as institutional investors rejigged their portfolios at the end of the March quarter. The benchmark NZX-50 index climbed 135.56 points, or 1.4 percent, to 9,796.75. Utility software firm Gentrack jumped as much as 40 percent after affirming its earnings guidance.
A measure of New Zealand's business confidence weakened to a near record low in March, while the total number of building approvals issued in the country rose a seasonally adjusted 4.7 percent sequentially in February, separate reports showed.
U.S. stocks rose sharply overnight As President Donald Trump extended national social distancing guidelines until at least April 30 and said that he expects the U.S. to be 'well on our way to recovery' by June 1st.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 3.2 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 3.6 percent and the S&P 500 advanced 3.4 percent.
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