Business Recorder
Apr 02, 2025
PRINT EDITION ►
BR MARKETS ►
Dollar to PKR ►
Home
Latest
BR Research
Markets
Ad
☰
✕
Home
Latest
BR Research
Markets
Business & Finance
World
Editorials
Opinion
MENA
Technology
Life & Style
Sports
Perspectives
Pakistan
Supplements
Print
Close the sidebar
Asian markets down, Seoul bucks trend on rate cut
Parvez Jabri
09 May, 2013
Facebook
Twitter
Whatsapp
Facebook
Twitter
Whatsapp
Read Comments
![](https://i.brecorder.com/images/2013/05/asian-market1.jpg">HONG KONG: Asian stocks were mostly lower on Thursday as dealers took profits after recent impressive gains, but higher than expected inflation figures out of China had little effect on the markets.</P><P>The falls came despite Wall Street recording another record rise and European shares closing strongly on Wednesday, following the release of figures showing a strong rise in German industrial output during March.</P><P>Tokyo ended down 0.66 percent, or 94.21 points, at 14,191.48 -- a day after hitting a near five-year high. Sydney closed flat, losing 1.4 points, at 5,198.4 despite data showing Australia's unemployment rate fell in April.</P><P>Seoul bucked the trend after the central Bank of Korea surprisingly shaved the benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to 2.50 percent, the first cut for seven months. The KOSPI gained 1.18 percent, or 23 points, to 1,979.45.</P><P>Hong Kong slid 0.14 percent, or 32.87 points, to end at 23,211,48 while Shanghai fell 0.59 percent, or 13.33 points, to 2,232.97.</P><P>Figures released Thursday showed that inflation in the world's second-biggest economy accelerated to 2.4 percent in April from 2.1 percent in March.</P><P>The consumer price index increased by 0.2 percent month-on-month in April, reversing a decrease of 0.9 percent in March, the National Bureau of Statistics said.</P><P>The year-on-year figure was higher than the median forecast for a gain of 2.2 percent in a poll of 13 economists by Dow Jones Newswires.</P><P>)