—– The Nikkei in Tokyo closed slightly higher as it was positively influenced by a rise in transportation stocks on hopes of an increase in travel demand in Japan. The biggest gainers were Tokyo Marine Holdings, Inc+2.61%, Nippon Sheet Glass+2.60% and Sapporo Holdings+2.60%. The biggest losers were Sumitomo Metal Mining-6.00%, Shionogi-5.57% and Hitachi Construction Machinery Co-5.30%.
The Nikkei Index closed at 26,171.25 points, up 21.70 points, or +0.08%.
—– The Australian S&P/ASX 200 closed higher. This was due to strong buying in real estate and banking stocks. The biggest gainers were Blackmores+5.40%, Perenti Global Ltd+5.04% and Goodman Group+4.87%. Losers were St Barbara-13.51%, Pointsbet Holdings-10.96% and Ramelius Resources-8.72%.
The S&P/ASX 200 index closed at 6,528.40 points, up 19.90 points, or +0.31%.
The All Ordinaries Index closed at 6,691.50 points, up 9.20 points, or +0.14%.
—– China’s Shanghai Composite closed higher after Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to focus the economy on its goals this year. The biggest gainers were Shanghai W Ibeda High Tech(+20.01%), HAXC Holdings Beijing Co(+20%) and Leader Harmonious Drive Systems(+20%). The biggest losers were Lead Eastern Investment(-11.11%), Shandong Head(-9.85%) and Scion Automatic A(-9.76%).
The Shanghai Composite Index closed at 3,320.15, up 52.95, or +1.62%.
—– The Hang Seng in Hong Kong closed higher after investors hoped that China would ease restrictions on the technology sector. The big gainers were China Tangshang+113.98%, Sino Harbor+71.03%, Dashan Education+49.25%. The losers were Nan Nan Resources Enterprise-37.18%, CK Life Scienes-31.15% and Grand Ocean Resources-29.27%.
The Hang Seng Index closed at 21,273.87, an increase of 265.53, or +1.26%.
—– The KOSPI in South Korea closed in the red as investors are concerned about the consequences of accelerated interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The biggest losers included Nps-21.32%, Sbw-21.12% and Korea Ind-20.42%. Gainers included Sambu Const (+30%), Cheil Grinding (+10.43%), and Doosan Heavy Ind. & Const. (+5,30 %).
The Composite Index (KOSPI) closed at 2314.32 points, down 28.49 points or -1.22%.
—– The Thai stock market fluctuated slightly in positive and negative territory as the market was pressured by concerns about the global economic slowdown. The biggest losers were AQ Estate-33.33%, Chumphon Palm Oil Industry-13.79%, NFC-7.93%. Gainers were led by Royal Orchid Hotel+15.27%, TWZ+14.29% and Asia Hotel+10.64%.
The SET closed at 1557.61 points, down 2.41 points or -0.15%.