Investment accounts
Adult accounts
Child accounts
Choosing Fidelity
Choosing Fidelity
Why invest with us Current offers Fees and charges Open an account Transfer investments
Financial advice & support
Fidelity’s Services
Fidelity’s Services
Financial advice Retirement Wealth Management Investor Centre (London) Bereavement
Guides
Guidance and tools
Guidance and tools
Choosing investments Choosing accounts ISA calculator Retirement calculators
Shares
Share dealing
Choose your shares
Tools and information
Tools and information
Share prices and markets Chart and compare shares Stock market news Shareholder perks
Pensions & retirement
Pensions, tax & tools
Saving for retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Speak to a specialist Creating a retirement plan Taking tax-free cash Pension drawdown Annuities Investing in retirement Investment Pathways
Asia report: Most markets rise despite Evergrande liquidation order
(Sharecast News) - Most markets in the Asia-Pacific region displayed positive trends today, as investors closely monitored developments in Hong Kong. The focal point of the day was the suspension of trading in Evergrande's shares, following a court order to liquidate the troubled Chinese property developer.
"Over the weekend, news emerged that China's securities regulator would halt the lending of certain stocks for short selling starting today," said TickMill market analyst Patrick Munnelly.
"Initially, this led to a rise in equities across China and Asia.
"However, optimism quickly faded, and stocks eased back, with Chinese markets mostly in the red with worries about the real estate industry front and centre, as China's decision to wind up Evergrande has raised the prospect of contagion risk."
Most markets in the green despite Evergrande turmoil
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index gained 0.77% to close at 36,026.94, while the Topix index saw a more substantial increase of 1.27%, ending at 2,529.48.
Leading the gainers on Tokyo's benchmark was Nitto Denko, up 5.2%, followed by Mazda Motor, rising by 4.35%, and Inpex, posting a 4.11% gain.
Conversely, China's markets were in the red, as the Shanghai Composite declined 0.92% to settle at 2,883.36, and the Shenzhen Component dropped 2.06%.
Arcplus Group and Anhui Xinli Finance recorded significant losses of 10.06% and 10.03% in Shanghai, respectively.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index managed to eke out a 0.78% gain, reaching 16,077.24.
Standout performers in the special administrative region included Budweiser Brewing Company, rising by 6.58%, Citic Pacific, with a 4.32% increase, and China Mengniu Dairy, up 4.29%.
South Korea's Kospi index showed resilience with a gain of 0.89%, closing at 2,500.65.
E-Mart and Kogas were among the top performers, posting substantial gains of 15.24% and 11.44%, respectively.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index edged up by 0.3% to finish at 7,578.40, led higher by Bapcor and Bellevue Gold, with gains of 5.88% and 5.41%, respectively.
New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 index also saw positive movement, increasing by 0.31% to reach 11,911.89.
Notable performers in Wellington included Investore Property, which rose by 3.42%, and Chorus, posting a 2.86% gain.
In currency markets, the dollar was last down 0.19% on the yen, trading at JPY 147.87.
The greenback also declined 0.42% against the Aussie to AUD 1.5145, while it recorded a 0.49% drop on the Kiwi, changing hands at NZD 1.6340.
Oil prices showed modest gains, with Brent crude futures last up 0.18% on ICE to $83.70 per barrel, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate increasing 0.18% to $78.16.
Evergrande in focus as court orders its liquidation
In a significant development on Monday, Hong Kong-listed shares of Evergrande saw a sharp decline of 12.2% during early trading, before they were halted.
The downturn came as a result of a Hong Kong court's decision to order the liquidation of the beleaguered Chinese real estate developer.
Once a prominent player in China's real estate sector, Evergrande had grappled with financial woes and has become entangled in Beijing's ongoing debt crisis in recent years.
The company, deemed the world's most indebted property developer, faced a default in 2021 and subsequently announced an offshore debt restructuring initiative in March of the same year.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Evergrande's overseas creditors failed to reach a last-minute deal over the weekend to restructure its debt.
Elsewhere, Singapore's Monetary Authority (MAS) made its first quarterly monetary policy decision of 2024 by opting to maintain the status quo.
As widely anticipated, the central bank left its exchange rate policy band, known as the Singapore dollar nominal effective exchange rate, unchanged.
In its policy statement, MAS emphasised its commitment to closely monitoring both global and domestic economic developments while remaining vigilant about potential risks to inflation and growth.
The central bank expressed optimism regarding Singapore's economic prospects for the year, projecting a GDP growth range of 1% to 3% in 2024.
Additionally, MAS anticipated an uptick in core inflation for the current quarter, attributing it in part to the one-off impact of the 1%-point increase in goods and services tax (GST) that took effect on 1 January.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
Share this article
Related Sharecast Articles
Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
Award-winning online share dealing
Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.
Expert insights into investing your money
Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.
Policies and important information
Accessibility | Conflicts of interest statement | Consumer Duty Target Market | Consumer Duty Value Assessment Statement | Cookie policy | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Reports | Doing Business with Fidelity | Investing in Fidelity funds | Legal information | Modern slavery | Mutual respect policy | Privacy statement | Remuneration policy | Staying secure | Statutory and Regulatory disclosures | Whistleblowing programme
Please remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance, the performance of investments is not guaranteed, and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. This website does not contain any personal recommendations for a particular course of action, service or product. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and, if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser. Before opening an account, please read the ‘Doing Business with Fidelity’ document which incorporates our client terms. Prior to investing into a fund, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about the fund.
This website is issued by Financial Administration Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FCA Register number 122169) and registered in England and Wales under company number 1629709 whose registered address is Beech Gate, Millfield Lane, Lower Kingswood, Tadworth, Surrey, KT20 6RP.