Asia stocks retreat on global growth concerns; Nikkei dips 0.7%

Investing.com - Asian stock markets were broadly lower for a second day on Thursday, as weak U.S. data on durable goods orders added to concerns over the global growth outlook, while concerns over declining corporate profits also weighed.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.55%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index dipped 0.1%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.7%.

The Nikkei came further off a one-year closing high hit earlier in the week as investors cashed in ahead of the Japanese fiscal year-end.
 
March is the final month of Japan's fiscal year, and market participants have expected many funds to lock in profits from a meteoric 19% rally in the January-to-March period after shedding more than 13% in April to December.

Exporters, which have gained sharply in the first quarter on the back a weakening yen, declined. Automakers Toyota and Nissan slumped 1.65% and 1.8% respectively, while consumer electronics giant Sony retreated 1.5%.

On the upside, Sharp saw shares jump 6.7%, extending the previous day’s 15% rally following reports that Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry is buying 10% of the Japanese electronics manufacturer for JPY66.91 billion, with the two to form a tie-up in liquid-crystal-display production.

Elsewhere, shares in Hong Kong came under pressure amid lingering fears over a ‘hard landing’ in China and worries over declining corporate profits.

PICC Property & Casualty, China’s biggest non-life insurer, saw shares drop 4% after reporting 2011 net income rose to CNY8.03 billion, missing expectations for income of CNY8.8 billion.

China Shipping Container Lines fell 1.55% after the nation’s second largest container carrier reported a loss of CNY2.74 billion last year, wider than the average estimate of CNY2.63 billion, amid rising fuel costs and declining demand.

Port operator China Merchants Holdings declined 1.7% after saying annual profit dropped 5.2% due to costs from a harbor deal.

Hong-Kong traded Chinese banks were also broadly weaker, with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Bank of China down 2.4% and 2.3% respectively ahead of their 2011 earnings reports later on Thursday.

Raw material producers also contributed to losses, amid concerns over the global growth outlook. Copper mining giant Jiangxi Copper Company dropped 3.4%, Aluminum Corporation of China, or CHALCO, slumped 2.4%, while shares in oil majors PetroChina and CNOOC fell 2.1% and 3.8% respectively.

But shares in Australia outperformed regional equities for a second day, remaining close to a four-month high.

The index was weighed by a 7% decline in Leighton Holdings, the country’s largest construction company after saying its underlying profit in the year ending December 31 will be between AUD400 million and AUD450 million, below market expectations, citing increased costs due to wet weather and lower-than-expected productivity.

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Meanwhile, European stock markets were mildly lower after the open supported by hopes that euro zone leaders will increase the size of the European debt firewall to combat the fiscal crisis.

The EURO STOXX 50 shed 0.3%, France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.1%, Germany's DAX fell 0.25%, while London’s FTSE 100 edged 0.15% lower.

Later in the day, Germany was to publish official data on employment change, while the U.S. was to release official data on initial jobless claims.