Australian equities markets resume declines

Equities markets in the Asia-Pacific region were mostly higher on Tuesday, although Australian markets have resumed their declines and India’s Sensex fell a bit. The wider gains came after broker upgrades in the Japanese car and truck manufacturing sector and on hopes that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again when it meets later in the week. The FTSE Straits Times Index added 0.29 percent to 3,049.9. The Kospi index was up 0.66 percent to 1,637.91 in South Korea while the Shanghai Composite was 0.87 percent higher to 4,457.94. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.99 percent to 24,291.8 while the Taiex added 1.21 percent to 7,576.42. Among the losers, India’s Sensex was 0.34 percent lower to 18,091.94. In Australia, the Sydney Ordinaries fell 2.24 percent to 5,754.5 and the S&P/ASX200 dropped 2.45 percent to 5,716.5.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 2.99 percent to 13,478.86 while the Topix index was up 2.76 percent to 1,328.73 and the Mothers market gained 1.07 percent to 656.49. The automobile manufacturing sector was higher on broker upgrades, while banks also saw advances. The real estate sector and shippers were higher as well.

European markets saw gains after US durable goods orders were reported up in December and after quarterly reports from the chemicals and pharmaceuticals sectors. The FTSE Eurofirst added 1.47 percent to 1,336.52. The Dax was up 1.09 percent to 6,892.96 while the IBEX was 1.45 percent higher to 13,215.1 and the CAC-40 gained 1.92 percent to 4,941.45. Banks saw gains on the session, as did chemicals and pharma sectors. Car and truck makers were mixed, while insurers were lower.

Markets were also higher in London, where the FTSE 100 added 1.66 percent to 5,885.2 and the FTSE 250 gained 2.75 percent to 9,905.4. Miners, travel agents, and airlines led the 100, while banks, cruise lines, and the pharmaceuticals sector saw declines.

Wall Street was mixed in early afternoon trade as the Federal Reserve began its two-day meeting which is expected to culminate in another interest rate cut and on the rise in durable goods orders. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3 percent to 12,421.53 and the S&P 500 was up 0.16 percent to 1,356.16 but the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.21 percent to 2,345.09. The declines for the Nasdaq came on declines in the internet sector, where search engines and online auctioneers and retailers all saw declines. Otherwise, manufacturers, banks and mortgage lenders all saw gains.

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