Asian Markets Decline on Friday, as China and Japan Retreat

Asian markets were mostly lower on Friday, March 21, as Chinese A-shares and Japan’s Nikkei 225 saw declines, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index posted modest gains.

In China, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.29% to 3,364.83 points, while the Shenzhen Component Index declined 1.76% to 10,687.55 points. The ChiNext Index dropped 2.17%, closing at 2,152.28 points. Most industry sectors saw losses, with electric machinery, consumer electronics, auto parts, jewelry, semiconductors, software development, instrumentation, and minor metals among the biggest decliners. Shipbuilding, mining, and wind power equipment sectors outperformed.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.12%, while the Hang Seng Tech Index fell 1.05%. Among actively traded stocks, Xiaomi rose 0.95%, Tencent dipped 0.18%, Alibaba declined 1.6%, BYD surged 3.89%, and Meituan slipped 0.79%.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.25%, while the TOPIX Index rose 0.45%. Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries jumped over 4%, with Mitsubishi Motors and Mitsubishi Corporation gaining more than 3%. Nintendo advanced nearly 3%, while Fujikura and Disco both dropped over 5%, and Advantest lost nearly 5%.

In other Asian markets, South Korea’s KOSPI edged up 0.23% to 2,643.13 points. Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI gained 0.16%, closing at 1,506.56 points. Singapore’s Straits Times Index declined 0.16% to 3,924.02 points. India’s S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.65%, finishing at 76,847.68 points, while Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite Index lost 2.00%, closing at 6,253.74 points as of 16:49 SGT.