Nikkei: 9,719.61 (+25.88) Hang Seng: 23,626.43 (–57.70) Shanghai Comp: 2,743.97 (+0.50):HONG KONG shares slipped yesterday, getting off to a weak start in June as investors took a more defensive stance, although a pick-up in volumes suggested greater market participation by investors.
The banking sector dragged on the broader market after sources revealed to Reuters on Tuesday that China’s regulators were planning a clean-up of billions of dollars of local government debt. China Construction Bank fell 0.8 per cent and was the third biggest drag on the benchmark behind oil major CNOOC, down 1.1 per cent, and HSBC, which fell 0.6 per cent.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei average rose to a three-week closing high, but caution on the pace of economic recovery in the US and the growing prospect of a split in Japan’s ruling party were seen to keep further gains in check.
Fast Retailing, the operator of Uniqlo, Japan’s leading apparel chain, saw its shares climbed 2.6 per cent to 12,150 yen.
Shares of small-cap solar panel companies surged in heavy trade, with Takashima at one point rising to 263 yen, up more than 7 per cent on the day. Sankyo Metal Industrial was up 13 per cent at 370 yen. – (Reuters)
