Natalya Malykh, Leading Analyst, Global Markets (Finam) Index Country Value Change Change. % YTD. % S&P/ASX 200 Australia 5 120.24 88.02 1.75% 10.14% All Ordinaries Australia 5 129.33 85.56 1.70% 9.96% Ho Chi Minh Vietnam 481.35 6.75 1.42% 16.34% Hang Seng Hong Kong 22 533.11 -86.07 -0.38% -0.55% Hang Seng H-shares Hong Kong 11 020.89 -81.07 -0.73% -3.63% BSE 30 (Sensex) India 19 427.56 -142.88 -0.73% 0.00% Jakarta Composite Indonesia 4 819.32 32.96 0.69% 11.64% Shanghai A-shares China 2 384.89 8.51 0.36% 0.37% CSI 300 China 2 539.87 5.6 0.22% 0.67% KLSE Composite Malaysia 1 627.64 -13.1 -0.80% -3.63% NZSE 50 New Zealand 4 387.06 5.96 0.14% 7.88% Karachi 100 Pakistan 17 700.38 -40.31 -0.23% 4.70% Straits Times Singapore 3 286.05 6.55 0.20% 3.76% Bangkok SET Thailand 1 045.26 7.14 0.69% 10.56% TAIEX Taiwan 7 927.49 -24.27 -0.31% 2.96% PSEi Philippines 6 654.60 -40.11 -0.60% 14.48% Colombo All-Shares Sri Lanka 5 704.53 15.55 0.27% 1.09% KOSPI South Korea 1 986.50 -15.63 -0.78% -0.53% Nikkei 225 Japan 12 560.95 179.76 1.45% 20.83% Topix Japan 1 051.65 13.48 1.30% 22.31% On Friday, March 15, Asian equities turned mixed on local factors. The regional MSCI Asia Apex 50 retreated 0.63% to 880.75, while Australia’s and Japan’s markets rallied. Tokyo traded higher as the parliament confirmed Haruhiko Kuroda, who sees eye to eye with Japan’s PM on monetary policy, as central bank governor. Investors expect that the BoJ may launch bolder monetary easing ahead of schedule. Amid this news, Japan’s Topix and Nikkei 225 advanced 1.3% and 1.45%, respectively, with Nikkei 225 showing the highest close since October 2008. Auto makers seesawed, with Toyota Motor adding 1.41%, Honda Motor jumping 2.55%, and Nissan Motor and Mazda Motor easing 0.71% and 2.27%, respectively. Shares of Sony shot up 11% after Daiwa Securities upgraded the electronics maker from Hold to Buy. Its Western peers Sharp and Panasonic strengthened 2.61% and 1.93%, respectively. Mainland China trading delivered modest gains, with the CSI 300 advancing 0.22%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, in turn, sank 0.38% to 22533.11. A housing sector decline driven by regulators’ remarks on keeping tabs on the industry also weighed on market sentiment. Before the final bell, shares of developers China Vanke, Poly Real Estate and China Merchants pulled back in the range from 2.96% to 4.78%. Chinese airlines generated strong demand amid calls of industry regulators in Shanghai Securities News to bolster investment in airports. Moreover, prices for aviation fuel are to be determined by the market. Shares of China Eastern Airlines finished the session 3.41% higher, while Hainan Airlines soared 10%, the highest intraday level. Trading in Sydney ended with the S&P/ASX 200 surging 1.75% on gains in the banking sector. ANZ, Westpac Banking, National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank of Australia added from 1.89% to 2.52%. By 10.59 GMT Brent futures were up 0.62% to USD 109.64/bbl. Gold inched up 0.06% to trade at USD 1591.70/oz. The US dollar index gave up 0.39% to settle at 82.28.