Asia markets wrap: Shanghai plummets on inflation fears
Chinese stocks plummeted on Monday as last Friday’s reserve requirement hike sunk in and rising property prices fuelled speculation that further measures would be taken to rein in inflation. Most equities in the region fell, and currencies were down against the dollar.
“Worries about inflation will be an ongoing issue throughout this year,” said Nader Naeimi at AMP Capital Investors. “Authorities still have plenty of ammunition to fight inflation, but pressure on interest rates will act as a constraint on the economic performance of some countries in the region.”
China’s Shanghai Composite tumbled 3 per cent to 2,706.66. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and China Construction Bank led falls for banks, while property developers China Vanke and Poly Real Estate Group slid more than 6 per cent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped 0.5 per cent to 24,157.00, while South Korea’s Kospi index was 0.4 per cent down at 2,099.85.
India’s BSE Sensex ended its losing streak, edging 0.1 per cent up to 18,882.20. Tata Consultancy, India’s largest software exporter, rose 1.7 per cent in anticipation of results released later on Monday. Reliance Infrastructure, builder of the mass rapid transit system in Mumbai, sank 7.5 per cent after paying $5.5m in a settlement with the market regulator following an investigation.
Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite fell 0.9 per cent to 3,535.73, while Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa edged 0.3 per cent up to 1,574.49.
Asian currencies mostly fell against dollar, with the Indian rupee down 0.3 per cent, the Korean won 0.3 per cent, and the Indonesian rupiah 0.1 per cent. The Chinese renminbi bucked the trend, rising 0.1 per cent.
