UpdateAsia chem stocks rise on rate cut rumours

27 September 2007 10:35  [Source: ICIS news]

(Updates throughout with closing stock prices.)

 

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Asian chemical stocks ended higher on Thursday as regional stock markets rallied on expectations that the US Federal Reserve may cut interest rates again.

 

In Japan, Mitsubishi Chemical’s stock price closed 2.8% higher, while Shin-Etsu Chemical saw its share price jump 4.9% at the close.

 

Chinese energy major Sinopec’s share price rose 1.9% on the Hong Kong Exchange, while PetroChina’s share price was up 1.7%.

 

Malaysia’s Titan Chemicals saw its stock close 1.9% higher after rising as much as 2.5% in the day, while Hong Kong’s Noble Group’s share price surged to close 9.4% higher on the Singapore Exchange.

 

In South Korea, SK Energy’s share price jumped 9.3% at the close but Honam Petrochemical’s stock ended 8.3% down.

 

Kenneth Shin, a financial analyst at South Korea’s Woori Securities, attributed the fall in Honam’s share price to “investors eager to take some profit” from the firm’s good stock market performance in the past few weeks.

 

Honam had been seeing ethylene glycol (EG) margins surge due to a supply crunch from plant shutdowns and turnarounds, said Shin.

 

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed 1.36% higher at 1,945.28 points at the close of trade.

 

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed 2.4% higher at 16,832.22 points, while Hong Kong’s blue chip Hang Seng Index ended 2.4% higher at 2,7065.15.

 

Singapore shares rose to a record high, with the Straits Times Index gaining 1.77% to close at 3,714.7 from the previous day, surpassing the previous high of 3,665.13 on 24 July. Benchmark indexes also reached records in Australia and India.

By: Jeanne Lim
+65 6780 4359

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