Stock Asia is mostly on the decline, with the exception of the Australian S&P/ASX 200 indicator, which shows an increase of 1.23% and thus sets a record for almost two months. China's Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Composite fell by 0.79% and 0.69%, respectively, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell by 0.9%. The indicator of the Korean stock exchange KOSPI fell by 0.95%, and the index of the Tokyo stock exchange Nikkei 225 - by 0.72%.
Investors behave rather cautiously during the holidays, as they want to preserve the profits they have already received, as a result of which they are less willing to take risks. This, in turn, contributes to the fact that the markets are in a fairly stable state and do not show sharp fluctuations in one direction or the other.
Another reason for traders' excitement is still the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases worldwide. Many cases of infection with omicron have been detected in the USA and Europe, nevertheless, this strain is considered more contagious than the previous ones, which contributes to its rapid spread. It should be noted that the vaccination rate in large countries of the Asia-Pacific region is approaching 80%, but without the introduction of booster doses, which are considered effective against a new type of coronavirus. To prevent the further spread of omicron, some states are forced to introduce a lockdown. So, the Chinese authorities have already introduced a lockdown in the north of the state.
Shares of Chinese companies are losing value: the value of Advantest Corp. securities. decreased by 1.8%, Meituan - by 2.7%, Tencent Holdings, Ltd. - by 1.7%, and Alibaba Group Holding, Ltd - by 2.6%.
While the shares of Chinese and Japanese car manufacturers are getting cheaper (Geely Automobile Holdings, Ltd. by 0.5%, BYD Co., Ltd. by 1.2%, Toyota Motor Corp. by 1.1%), shares of Korean Kia Corp. and Hyundai Motor Co., Ltd. added 0.1% and 0.9% in price, respectively.
Due to the increase in the cost of resources, the shares of PetroChina Co., Ltd. rose by 0.3%.
Against the background of the growth of the Australian indicator, the value of securities of large companies in the country also rose. Thus, the shares of Commonwealth Bank of Australia rose by 1.5%, Westpac Banking Corp. - by 1.3%, Australia & New Zealand Banking Group, Ltd - by 1.6%. The securities of mining companies also rose in price: Pilbara Minerals added 6.4%, Lynas Rare Earth - 4.2%, Allkem, Ltd. - 5.2%, AVZ Minerals - 7.8%. Thanks to Carnaby Resources' announcement that new deposits of copper and gold have been found in the country, the company's share price soared by 73.5%.
The growth was also shown by the Japanese company SoftBank (by 1.6%) and the Chinese Bank of China, Ltd. (by 0.4%).
