Asia stocks track US losses on oil rout; Nikkei off 7-year highs CNBC staff | @CNBC Mon, 8 Dec 14 | 8:11 PM ET CNBC Asian equity markets joined Wall Streets slump on Tuesday after oil markets resumed their downward spiral. Both Brent and U.S. crude tumbled 4 percent to new five-year lows overnight on the back of bearish forecasts, which saw the the Dow post its biggest decline since October. Read MoreWill this country be the next oil domino? Calls for Chinese stimulus were in focus following Mondays November export growth reading. With both exports and imports declining, there are reports suggesting pressure is ramping up on the Peoples Bank of China to cut the reserve required ratio. Anticipation of further easing is likely to continue driving equities in China higher, said Stan Shamu, market strategist at IG in a note. Meanwhile, Chinas Central Economic Work Conference (CEWC) kicks off later today, an annual meeting of policymakers that sets economic priorities for the coming year. Symbol Name Price Change %Change NIKKEI Nikkei 225 Index 17832.58 -103.06 -0.57% HSI Hang Seng Index 24047.67 --- UNCH 0% ASX 200 S&P/ASX 200 5336.50 -36.21 -0.67% SHANGHAI Shanghai Composite Index 3021.52 83.88 2.86% KOSPI KOSPI Index 1974.82 -4.13 -0.21% CNBC 100 CNBC 100 ASIA IDX 7061.13 -19.12 -0.27% Nikkei 0.6% lower Japanese shares snapped their seven-day winning streak, moving off a seven-and-a-half-year high, weighed down by a stronger currency. The yen last traded at 120.7 per dollar, off Mondays seven-year low. Sentiment was also hurt by a Reuters poll showing that a majority of firms see the economy in a standstill or in recession. Among the biggest losers on the benchmark Nikkei, Sony and Tokyo Electron lost nearly 3 percent each. ASX down 0.7% Australias benchmark S&P ASX 200 retreated from one-and-a-half-week highs hit in the previous session, while the Australian dollar traded below 83 U.S. cents, near a four-year low. Energy producers were hit hard; Origin Energy and Oil Search tanked 3 percent each while Santos slumped nearly 10 percent. Qantas shares soared 6 percent, extending the previous days rally, after the airline forecast on Monday a return to profit in the six months through December. Kospi down 0.2% South Korean stocks fell for a second day, retreating further from a two-month high hit on Friday. Oil refiners posted steep declines; S-Oil and SK Energy both skidded over 3 percent each.
Posted on: Tue, 09 Dec 2014 00:30:41 +0000
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