By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Stocks in Hong Kong and much of the
rest of Asia held to gains Friday following a batch of economic
data from China that were roughly in line with analyst
expectations.
The Chinese government said third-quarter gross domestic product
climbed 7.8% from a year earlier, meeting projections in separate
Reuters and Dow Jones Newswires surveys of economists. Growth in
retail sales slightly trailed the consensus forecast, while that
for industrial production slightly exceeded the estimates.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index stretched its gain to 1.1% after the
reports, and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index -- which tracks
mainland Chinese firms listed in Hong Kong -- also picked up 1.1%.
The Shanghai Composite Index extended its rise to 0.6% from
0.1%.
Japanese shares, however, returned to losses, pulling the Nikkei
Stock Average down 0.1%, though South Korea's Kospi logged a 0.3%
rise.
Australian stocks, as measured by the S&P/ASX 200 , closed
up by 0.7%.
The Australian dollar (AUDUSD) bounced up after the data, buying
as much as 96.30 U.S. cents compared with 96.11 U.S. cents ahead of
the reports. The spike, however, was short-lived as the Aussie
drifted back down to 96.09 U.S. cents. Australia is often sensitive
to the economic outlook of its top export market.
Some of China's third-quarter GDP growth was supported through
temporary state spending, which is highly unlikely to continue into
2014, TD Securities said in a note Friday.
"Nevertheless, we hold to our view that sustainable Chinese
growth, even at lower levels, remains supportive for the Australian
dollar, as urbanization and social housing construction requires
Australia's close proximity and high-quality commodities. We target
7.6% GDP growth for 2013."
The Chinese government is aiming for economic expansion of at
least 7.5% this year.
The Chinese economic figures also included 10.2% growth in
September industrial output, compared with an above-forecast 10.4%
in August, and slightly exceeding a 10.1% consensus estimate from a
Dow Jones Newswires survey. September retail sales eased to a 13.3%
annual growth rate, after a 13.4% increase in the previous month.
The result trailed a 13.5% estimate from the Dow Jones Newswires
poll.
In Hong Kong, casino stocks rallied, with Sands China Ltd.
surging 8.9% after the Macau subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands Corp.
(LVS) posted a 43% rise in third-quarter net revenue to $2.34
billion. Its rivals also benefited, as MGM China Holdings Ltd.
(2282.HK) climbed 5.3%, and Wynn Macau Ltd. (WYNMY) jumped 6.6%
.
Also, shares of AIA Group Ltd.'s (AAGIY) leapt 42% after the
insurer's new business value rose to a record high during the third
quarter.
But shares of Lenovo Group Ltd. (LNVGF) fell 3.1% following a
report in The Wall Street Journal that the PC maker is considering
a bid for beleaguered mobile-phone maker BlackBerry Ltd. (RIMM)
.
Japan's blue-chip exporters dragged after an overnight rise in
the yen, with industrial major Komatsu Ltd. (KMTUF) off by 1%, and
steel mill JFE Holdings Inc. (5411.TO) slumping 3.2%.
In Sydney, oil producer Santos Ltd. (SSLTY) fell 0.9% after
posting a drop in third-quarter output and placing its full-year
production outlook at the low end of its previous guidance.
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