Asia stocks mixed as EU concerns linger; Nikkei slips 0.4%

Investing.com – Asian stock markets were mixed on Wednesday, as Japanese exporters came under pressure amid ongoing concerns over the euro zone’s debt crisis, while gains in Chinese lenders lifted shares in Hong Kong.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 1.2%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index fell 0.55%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index slumped 0.4%.

Market sentiment was weighed after Slovakia’s parliament on Tuesday rejected a plan to boost the size of the European Financial Stability Facility, the region’s bailout fund, further adding to worries over the ongoing debt crisis in the euro zone.

Shares in Japanese exporters with high exposure to Europe performed poorly, with camera maker Olympus, which gets more than 20% of its revenue from the euro zone, fell 2.05%, while electronics manufacturer Sharp dropped 3.1%.

Meanwhile, automaker Honda and camera-maker Nikon retreated 2.2% and 3.5% respectively after suspending production in Thailand due to the worst flooding seen in that country for almost 50 years. 

In Hong Kong, sentiment was lifted amid speculation Chinese authorities will do more to boost falling stock prices a day after Central Huijin Investment, a state-run investment fund, began buying shares of the nation’s top four financial institutions.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China saw shares jump 2.3%, China Construction Bank shares rose 3.15%, Hong-Kong-listed shares of Bank of China gained 2.95%, while Agricultural Bank of China added 2.8%.

On the downside, Esprit Holdings, the Hong Kong-based retailer that counts Europe as its largest market tumbled 7.2% amid media reports that the firm misstated the number of outlets it operates in China.

Elsewhere, raw material producers led losses in Australia after the largest U.S. aluminum producer Alcoa reported lower-than-expected third quarter earnings after Tuesday’s closing bell on Wall Street.

Australia’s top aluminum producer Alumina saw shares drop 2.5%, Aquila Resources shares fell 4.9%, while BHP Billiton slumped 1.1%.

Meanwhile, the outlook for European stock markets was modestly downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a slide of 0.1%, France’s CAC 40 futures dipped 0.2%, the FTSE 100 futures shed 0.3%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to a loss of 0.25%.

Later in the day, European Commission President Jose Barroso was to present proposals on bank recapitalization to the European Parliament. The U.S. was to publish the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy-setting meeting.