Asia report: Stocks mixed as Japanese GDP growth falls short

Stocks in Asia were mixed as they closed on Tuesday, as investors continued watching for developments on the Russia-Ukraine front.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.79% at 26,865.19, as the yen weakened 0.13% against the dollar, last trading at JPY 115.69.

Technology investing giant SoftBank Group closed 2.09% lower, while among the benchmark’s other major components, robotics specialist Fanuc eked out gains of 0.13%, and Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing was 1.04% higher.

The broader Topix index was 0.83% weaker by the end of trading in Tokyo, closing at 1,914.70.

Fresh data out of Japan showed the country’s economy growing 5.4% year-on-year in the last quarter of 2021, coming in shy of Reuters-polled forecasts for a gain of 5.8%.

“The first quarter will likely see a pullback in activity, given the explosion of Covid cases and the accompanying quasi-states of emergency across Japan, despite an increase in government spending from the supplementary budget,” said Craig Botham at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

“Consumption in particular can be expected to move back into negative territory, before recovering in the second quarter - the Covid wave appears to have peaked before triggering a full state of emergency.

“Private sector investment should also improve, given strong export growth and the clear signal for capex provided by global inflation and supply chain issues.”

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite gained 0.5% to 3,446.09, and the smaller, technology-centric Shenzhen Composite rose 1.35% to 2,283.63.

South Korea’s Kospi was 1.03% lower at 2,676.54, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 0.82% weaker at 24,355.71.

The blue-chip technology stocks were on the back foot in Seoul, with Samsung Electronics closing flat, and SK Hynix 4.15% weaker.

Oil prices were lower as the region went to bed, with Brent crude last down 3.05% at $93.54 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate losing 3.31% to $92.30.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.51% to 7,206.90, while across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 slipped 0.1% to 11,938.32.

The down under dollars were both stronger on the greenback, with the Aussie last ahead 0.14% at AUD 1.4011, and the Kiwi advancing 0.05% to NZD 1.5108.