By Michael Kitchen, MarketWatch
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japanese stocks fell Friday,
extending losses into a second day after sharp gains earlier in the
week, while Australian shares inched higher, helped by strength for
some miners.
The moves came as Hong Kong and South Korean markets were closed
for holidays, reportedly curbing trading volumes in bourses that
were open.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average moved off opening lows but still
traded with a 0.2% loss in early morning action, adding to
Thursday's 0.4% retreat, which had followed a major jump of 2.3% on
Wednesday.
Losses for Wall Street overnight helped dampen sentiment, with
the S&P 500 (SPX) down 0.5% after a Federal Reserve official
tipped a pullback in the central bank's easing programs could come
as soon as this summer.
Tech-sector blue chips were among the leading decliners, with
Advantest Corp. (ATE) down 4.2%, Pioneer Corp. (6773.TO) tumbling
4.6%, and Tokyo Electron Ltd. (8035.TO) shooting 4.4% lower, back
to levels seen at the start of the week.
Sony Corp. (SNE) dropped 2.6% after NPD Group data late Thursday
showed April U.S. videogame-console sales plunging 42% from
year-earlier levels as consumers awaited new devices from Sony and
rivals Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Nintendo Co. (NTDOF). Shares of
Nintendo traded 1.4% lower.
Other significant losses for blue-chip issues included a 2.6%
drop for Mazda Motor Corp. (7261.TO), a 3% loss for J. Front
Retailing Co. , and a 3.1% drubbing for recently volatile shares of
Sharp Corp. (SHCAF).
Among the advancers, Hitachi Ltd. (HIT) rose 1.9% after the
conglomerate forecast earnings for the 2015-16 fiscal year that
bested analyst expectations.
Sydney noses higher
Over in Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 crawled 0.1%
higher, helped by strength in some major mining and banking
names.
Senior miners BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) and Rio Tinto Ltd. (RIO)
added 1.5% and 0.4%, respectively, after a 0.9% advance for July
copper futures overnight. Uranium extractor Paladin Energy Ltd.
(PDN.T) rose 1.9%, while Alumina Ltd. (AWC) added 1%, though losses
for gold futures helped drive Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCMGF) shares
2.4% lower.
"If commodity prices remain supported in the Asian trading
session, Australian stocks should hold near current levels and halt
recent weaknesses," wrote Rivkin global analyst Tim Radford just
ahead of the market open. The ASX 200 had ended Thursday with a
0.5% loss, after falling 0.6% on Wednesday.
Among financials, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBAUY) -- the
ASX 200's most heavily weighted component -- gained 0.7%, while
Macquarie Group Ltd. (MCQEF) improved by 0.9% and insurer QBE
Insurance Group Ltd. (QBIEY) rose 1.4%.
Shares of Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd. (VBHLF) jumped 7.9%
higher after 17% crash in the previous session on the back of a
profit warning. Helping boost the airline operator, both UBS and
J.P. Morgan raised their ratings on the shares to buy and
overweight, respectively.
However, a profit warning at energy firm WorleyParsons Ltd.
(WOR.AU) sent that stock falling 15% in Sydney.
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