Asian markets mixed as investors stay cautious

Banking shares led Tokyo 0.55 percent lower as buyers stayed away due to worries about a slew of planned share sales by cash-strapped companies.

Hong Kong ended 0.32 percent down on profit-taking after the index hit near a 16-month intra-day high.

However, stronger commodities prices helped lift Sydney 0.20 percent, while Shanghai added 0.62 percent. Seoul powered 1.13 percent higher as investor risk appetite was buoyed by the overnight performance of U.S. stocks.

Wall Street shares edged 0.29 percent higher Tuesday to fresh 2009 highs after recovering from early profit-taking on economic growth and interest rate concerns.

Investors locked in profits in early trading after data showed smaller-than-expected increases in industrial production and capacity utilization, and key retail companies provided a cautious outlook despite better earnings.

TOKYO: Down 0.55 percent. The Nikkei-225 index fell 53.13 points to 9,676.80, the second straight day of decline. After the closing bell, Japan's top bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial announced plans Wednesday to raise up to one trillion yen (11.2 billion dollars) from investors, confirming earlier media reports.

HONG KONG: Down 0.32 percent. The Hang Seng Index fell 73.82 points to 22,840.33. Profit taking set in after the market hit a near 16-month intraday high.

SYDNEY: Up 0.20 percent. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 added 9.6 points to 4,739.0. The market was lifted by stronger commodities prices amid an absence of offshore leads, dealers said.

SHANGHAI: Up 0.62 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, was up 20.34 points to close at 3,303.23

The 28 stocks listed on the Nasdaq-style ChiNext board all closed higher on Wednesday.

SEOUL: Up 1.13 percent. The KOSPI rose 17.99 points to 1,603.97 points. “The recent solid performance of U.S. markets seemed to encourage investors to believe that the weak dollar trend is still valid and risk appetite hasn't died yet,” said Choi Seong-Lak, an analyst at SK Securities.

SINGAPORE: Down 0.72 percent. The blue-chip Straits Times Index fell 19.91 points to 2,745.04.

BANGKOK: Up 0.10 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index was up 0.71 points at 707.26 points.

KUALA LUMPUR: Down 0.38 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index lost 4.85 points to close at 1,275.10.

The bourse may test higher Thursday despite cautious trade ahead of the debut of Malaysia's largest mobile operator Maxis, analysts said.

JAKARTA: Up 0.42 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index gained 10.44 points to 2,484.22.

MANILA: Up 0.68 percent. The composite index gained 20.52 points to 3,052.61.

WELLINGTON: Down 0.10 percent. The NZX-50 index fell 3.11 points to 3,128.40.

MUMBAI: Down 0.30 percent. The 30-share Sensex index fell 51.87 points to 16,998.78.

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