BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stock markets overcame early losses to mostly gain Wednesday as investors hoped for good news from the slew of corporate earnings reports due soon in the U.S.

Oil prices fell to near $85 a barrel while the dollar was stronger against the euro and the yen.

Asian stocks initially slipped after Slovakia, one of the smallest members of the 17-nation grouping that uses the euro, blocked a measure to expand the region’s financial rescue program for heavily indebted countries. The move intensified worries that a failure by Europe to contain its debt crisis could lead to a massive debt default by the Greek government.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropped 0.3 percent to 8,745.57. But other major indexes reversed course. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.6 percent to 18,255.23 and South Korea’s Kospi added 0.2 percent to 1,798.82. Benchmarks in Singapore and mainland China also swung into positive territory.

In Hong Kong, sentiment was helped by a government pledge to expand the supply of affordable housing for low- and middle-income residents. Blue chip real estate stocks in Hong Kong welcomed the news. China Vanke Co. rose 2.4 percent, Poly Real Estate Group jumped 3.2 percent, and China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. gained 1 percent.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.2 percent to 2,399.18, two days after a government investment fund announced it had bought shares in major banks, helping to bolster the country’s sagging stock market.

The banks’ Hong Kong-listed shares continued to pile on gains. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China gained 1.2 percent, Agricultural Bank of China added 1.3 percent, and China Construction Bank rose 2 percent.

But in Japan, shares of Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. fell, a day after the companies said some vehicle manufacturing in Thailand had to be suspended due to flooding. Honda lost 2.1 percent and Toyota was down 0.9 percent.

Benchmarks in Australia, Taiwan and Thailand were also lower.

Many analysts hope that the upcoming wave of U.S. corporate earnings reports will pull investor focus away from Europe and back to the health of American companies.

PepsiCo Inc., one of the world’s largest food and beverage makers, is expected to report an uptick in profit Wednesday when the food and beverage maker releases its fiscal third-quarter results.

The results are being closely watched for clues as to what U.S. consumers are willing to spend their money on, which plays a critical role in the U.S. economy.

“If the U.S. corporations miss their estimates for the third quarter, then we will see selling pressure” on markets, according to Castor Pang, head of research at Core Pacific-Yamaichi in Hong Kong.

On Tuesday, Slovakia’s parliament rejected a bill that would have strengthened the powers of a regional rescue fund to help bail out strapped economies in the eurozone.

The 16 other countries that use the euro have already signed off on the bill, but the measure requires unanimous support.

There are ways around Slovakia’s opposition, but the move temporarily sets back efforts to address Europe’s debt jam, which has been the most important issue for financial markets for months.

Such worries have caused investors globally to dump stocks, according to Cambridge, Mass.-based fund tracker EPFR Global.

Eight of the nine major equity fund groups tracked by EPFR posted outflows during the week ending Oct. 5. Investors withdrew a net $11.57 billion from equity funds, the third-worst weekly tally this year.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average ended down 17 points after moving between small gains and losses throughout the day.

The Dow lost 0.1 percent to close at 11,416.3. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.1 percent to 1,195.54, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.7 percent to 2,583.03.

Benchmark crude for November delivery was down 73 cents at $85.08 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 40 cents to settle at $85.81 in New York on Tuesday.

In currencies, the euro fell to $1.3616 from $1.3669 late Monday in New York. The dollar strengthened slightly to 76.69 yen from 76.66 yen. — AP

European stock index futures pointed to a steady start after four straight sessions of gains while U.S. futures were mildly weaker.

World stocks clambered out of bear market territory on Monday after a pledge from German and French leaders to come up with a plan by the end of the month to tackle Greece’s confidence-sapping debt woes and recapitalize European banks.

“I think it is significant that Germany and France came together to show they will not allow big banks to collapse,” said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at Monex Securities in Tokyo. “Hopes that there won’t be an abandoned bank like Lehman will ease excessive worries in the market.”

Commodities were steady after surging on Monday as money flowed back into riskier assets.

Euro STOXX 50 index futures rose 0.1 percent. Futures for Germany’s DAX gained 0.2 percent and France’s CAC-40 futures were flat, while financial spreadbetters called the FTSE 100 <.FTSE> to open down 0.1 percent. S&P 500 futures fell 0.2 percent. <.EU> <.L>

Shares in China’s big four banks leapt after the domestic arm of the country’s sovereign wealth fund bought their shares in the secondary market on Monday, in Beijing’s first move to support stock prices since the 2008 financial crisis.

But market players remained cautious, with early gains in Shanghai fading. The benchmark mainland stock index <.SSEC> has lost nearly 17 percent this year amid growing concerns of a “hard landing” for the economy.

“This is psychological more than anything fundamental,” said Cheng Yi, senior analyst at Xiangcai Securities in Shanghai. “If 2008 offers any indication, we could see stock prices dip after an initial boost.”

Japan’s Nikkei share average <.N225> closed up 2 percent, partly catching up with gains elsewhere in the region on Monday, when Tokyo was shut for a holiday. <.T>

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> also rose 2 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng <.HSI> rallied 2.7 percent, but Shanghai’s benchmark gave up its early gains and was off 0.1 percent. <.HK> <.SS>

RECAPITALISE BANKS

Global markets were buoyed after German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy said they would agree on how to recapitalize European banks and present a plan for accelerating economic coordination in the euro zone by a G20 summit in Cannes on November 3-4.

“That is both a positive and a negative,” said Dan Greenhaus, New York-based chief global strategist at broker-dealer BTIG. “It was negative in that no specific details were provided, but positive that they have given a self-imposed deadline.”

Greenhaus told Asia-based reporters on a conference call that BTIG believed Europe’s banking sector would need an injection of 300-500 billion euros.

“Ultimately the major banks need to be recapitalized, but not recapitalized by an unreachable amount of money,” he said.

Wall Street stocks <.SPX> rose more than 3 percent on Monday and European shares gained nearly 2 percent. <.N> <.EU>

MSCI’s All-Country World index <.MIWD00000PUS> now stands around 18 percent below its May high for the year after climbing above the 20 percent loss level — the rule-of-thumb definition of a bear market — on Monday.

FUNDAMENTAL SOLUTION

The euro was virtually unchanged around $1.3640 on Tuesday, after surging as much as 3 cents to a high just below $1.37 in the previous session. The single currency edged up against the yen to around 104.60.

“An image of the euro falling without limit is receding, but unless there is some kind of fundamental solution, a clear break above $1.40 will probably be difficult,” said Satoshi Okagawa, senior global markets analyst for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation in Singapore.

The dollar rose 0.2 percent against a basket of currencies <.DXY>, but U.S. Treasuries fell as investors appetite for riskier assets returned, with the 10-year yield rising 10 basis points to around 2.164 percent.

A rebound in credit markets continued with spreads tightening about 12 basis points on iTraxx’s Asia ex-Japan investment grade index, while regional interest rate swap curves were mostly higher and steeper.

Oil was slightly lower after rallying 3 percent on Monday, with U.S. crude down 11 cents at $85.31 a barrel and Brent crude shedding 20 cents to $108.75.

Gold, which in recent weeks has switched from a negative to a positive correlation with riskier assets such as industrial commodities and stocks as safe haven investors turned to the dollar, rose 0.2 percent to around $1,678 an ounce.

“As the news revived risk appetite, some money was being moved out of the money market to commodities, including gold,” said Hou Xinqiang, an analyst at Jinrui Futures in China. — Reuters

Tapping in to a rapid increase in regional demand Summer Farms is building on their strong asset base by raising $50m for expansion and land acquisition in Asia. Post funding Summer Farms will become one of Asia’s leading Agricultural companies and expects to IPO in 2014.

Summer Farms export worldwide to more than 50 countries across South America, Europe, The middle east, Asia and Oceania. Summer farms operate their own in-house research facility for further developing the “ATS” super sweet corn hybrid that has already become renowned worldwide.

Interested in Investing in Agriculture CLICK HERE

Global food output will have to climb 70 per cent between 2010 and 2050 as the world population swells to 9.1 billion people and rising incomes boost meat and dairy consumption, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization said last year.

Rising prices for grain, farm land, crop inputs and other sectors are signs of the recent buoyancy of the ag economy. Now, there’s another signal of the sector’s performance.

The stock prices for publicly traded ag-related companies have been trending higher than the stock market in general, a sign that the agricultural economy has weathered the recession better than most sectors, according to University of Illinois ag economist Gary Schnitkey.

China’s increased demand for agricultural commodities will mean an increase in prices for the entire world market.

China’s farmland shrank by 8.33 million hectares (20.6 million acres) in the past 12 years, China’s top agriculture adviser Chen Xiwen said on March 24.

Land under cultivation has already fallen to the government’s 120 million hectare limit after being consumed by apartments, factories, desertification and a forestation campaign. Drought has also hit the country’s main wheat-growing region.

The Chinese ate 20 per cent more chicken last year than in 2006, while pork consumption rose almost 11 per cent, USDA data show. It takes 2 kilograms of feed to produce one kilogram of chicken, and about double that for pork, according to the Washington-based Earth Policy Institute.

China, the world’s biggest grain producer, was a net exporter of soybeans until 1995. This year it’s forecast to import 57 million tons, or almost 60 per cent of global trade in the oilseed used in animal-feed and tofu.

Shayne Heffernan

Shayne Heffernan oversees the management of funds for institutions and high net worth individuals.

Shayne Heffernan holds a Ph.D. in Economics and brings with him over 25 years of trading experience in Asia and hands on experience in Venture Capital, he has been involved in several start ups that have seen market capitalization over $500m and 1 that reach a peak market cap of $15b. He has managed and overseen start ups in Mining, Shipping, Technology and Financial Services. www.livetradingnews.com

Find out more about HCM Managed Funds

For More Information Contact

Linda Johnson,
Business Development Director – Private Client Group,
Heffernan Capital Management
Sales@Heffcap.com

Bangkok

Suite 53 Athenee Tower
63 Wireless Road,
Lumpini, Pathumwan,
Bangkok 10330 THAILAND
Tel: +66 8 0700 7900
Fax: +6682 2079301
Email : info@heffcap.com

New York

347 5th Avenue, Suite 1402-508 NY, NY 10016
Tel: +1 646-403-9881
Fax: +1 646-403-8014
Email : info@heffcap.com

Singapore

3 Raffles Place #07-01
Bharat Building Singapore 048617
Tel: +65 6329 6408
Fax: +65 6329 9699
Email : info@heffcap.com

Get the Updates Daily

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Managed Trading Account with Integrity and Stability

Eliminate concerns about Stock Market Downturn, Real Estate Downturn, Bernie Madoff’s, Current Events and Diversify at the Same Time;

THE BEST OVERALL MANAGED ACCOUNT SOLUTION, FIND OUT WHY, CONTACT US TODAY

Now is the time to get professional portfolio management services with HCM. Reap the benefits of proper international diversification and positioning in the global market place, with a high degree of customer service.

Our Managed Account Program accommodates those investors who wish to allocate a portion of their risk capital to managed hedge funds.

Find out why we are at the top, select the right investment for inclusion in your portfolio, to receive information and/or get started Click Here

Lower the Exposure of Your Portfolio to the Risks of the Global Marketplace.

Did you know? Major banks around the globe are weighing heavier on relatively shorter term trading speculation than the traditional lending-borrowing business.

Profits can be made on a falling market (by selling short) just as easily as buying a rising market, in addition, derivatives and CFD trading allows profits to be compounded monthly. Let us put the world’s most liquid, but least understood market, in your financial arsenal.

Global Portfolio and World Events

Do you have your portfolio directly linked to the economy?

• Equities
• Interest Rates
• Real-Estate

Which investment benefits are You lacking?

• Recession Proof
• Inflation
• Full Transparency and Audit Trail

Select the right investment for inclusion in your portfolio,to receive information and or get started Click Here

Managed Trading Account

You have a choice. There is No need to own “Companies” .There is No need to own illiquid Company stock, funds or Real Estate”. Do you have your portfolio directly linked to the economy? Or Worse just the Stock Market or Real Estate? Get a Liquid, Transparent/Separately Managed Liquid,Alternative Investment Account in Your Name , where money management, along with capital preservation and liquidity are most important.

Features:

• Professionally supervised by traders
• Risk/Money management (very important to us)
• Trades only occur with the most liquid spot markets
• High degree of liquidity
• Excellent Risk-to-Reward ratio
• Profits possible regardless of direction of the market
• Portfolio diversification: currencies, commodities, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ADRs

Benefits:

• No one can withdraw funds other than the client
• The clients deposit direct to custodian
• The trader can only trade
• The investor’s funds remain in the client’s OWN NAME.
• The investor’s funds are held by an independent institution .
• Clients have direct access to their account, 24 hours a day

Our Goals For You:

• Capital Preservation
• Income Generation
• Security
• Quality Service
• Planning for the Future

Select the right investments for inclusion in your portfolio, to receive information and or get started Click Here

Your use of any of the Websites or any of the Services (defined below) constitutes your agreement to be bound by and comply with the Website Terms and Conditions and your consent to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information as described in the Privacy Policy. If you do not so agree and consent, you are not authorized to visit or use our Websites or the Services.

Be extremely careful, investing in securities carries a high degree of risk; you may likely lose some or all of the investment. You must also accept that opinions on stock markets change minute to minute, opinions expressed my change at any time without warning. Opinions maybe influenced by ad sales and other financial consideration. This site does not offer any assistance in making financial decisions.

Read the Terms of Service

Amata is Thailand’s leading developer of industrial estates, Amata Nakorn in Chonburi Province and Amata City in Rayong Province, on the country’s largest industrial area the Eastern Seaboard. Amata Corporation PCL. established in 1989 and listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) in 1997, is heading Amata Group with 15 subsidiary companies.

Subsidiary businesses manage the supply of utilities, infrastructure and services in Amata Industrial Estates. Amata operates one industrial park in Vietnam, Amata City Bien Hoa; its subsidiary business also offers for a convenient business start up ready-built factories at Amata Nakorn, Thailand.

The Company operates in three segments, including real estate development, which is operated under Amata Nakorn industrial estate project in Rayong province; utility services and rental, which are carried out both in Thailand and overseas, and support services for Amata industrial estate.

The Company’s subsidiaries include Amata City Co., Ltd., Amata (Vietnam) Joint Stock Company, Amata Water Co., Ltd., Amata Facility Services Co., Ltd., Amata Summit Ready Built Co., Ltd., and Amata Hong Kong Ltd, among others. The Company, together with its subsidiaries, also offers support services, such as ready-built factories, power, water, waste water treatment, broadband Internet, vehicle leasing, housing, shopping, health clinic, schools, restaurants and others.

About Amata Full-service industrial estates that save you money and time

Amata Corp. PCL is Thailand’s leading developer and manager of factory estates. Both our Thai estates are situated in the nation’s Eastern Seaboard region, today Southeast Asia’s preferred location for manufacturing. We also operate in booming Vietnam. Known for going beyond the basics to offer a quality, full-service approach, Amata helps factories succeed by saving them time and money. Our 15 subsidiaries and dozens of joint ventures offer support like Ready-Built Factories, power, water, waste water treatment, broadband internet, vehicle leasing, housing, shopping, health clinic, schools, restaurants and more. We are building an industrial estate that functions as a complete town, where people can both earn a living and live well. Amata Nakorn, Chonburi is our biggest estate, with 3,020 hectares (18,873 rai or 7,549 acres), where some 514 manufacturing projects will soon be operating, including 454 already online or under

construction. Located in Chonburi province, in Board of Investment (BOI) Zone 2, the estate is just 57 km from Bangkok, and 42 km from Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Amata City, Rayong has 1,350 hectares (10,018 rai or 4,007 acres), with 128 manufacturing projects soon in operation, including 97 already operating or under construction. Its location in Rayong province is just 27 km from the expanding deep-sea port at Laem Chabang and 99 km from Suvarnabhumi International Airport. It offers BOI Zone 3 investment privileges. In Vietnam, Amata has one major project serving investors at the most advanced standards there. Amata City, Bien Hoa, established in 1994, has 112 factories and more than 700 hectares (4,370 rai or 1,750 acres) of land in Dong Nai province near Ho Chi Minh City. The project’s new phase will add villas, apartments and lifestyle facilities in great demand there. Another Dong Nai industrial estate is being planned near the major airport expected to open after 2010. Amata was established in 1989 and listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in 1997. Our global clients include such names as Sumitomo Rubber, Yokohama Tire Manufacturing, Canadoil, Triumph Motorcycles, BMW, Daikin, Sony Mobile, Pepsi-Cola, Bridgestone, Toyota, Colgate Palmolive, Kao, Mitsubishi Electric, Mitsubishi Elevator, Hino Motors and many more. Dozens of the most dynamic Thai manufacturers also make their home at Amata.

Performance at a Glance

Amata Consolidated Results 2006 – 2010

Shayne Heffernan

Shayne Heffernan oversees the management of funds for institutions and high net worth individuals.

Shayne Heffernan holds a Ph.D. in Economics and brings with him over 25 years of trading experience in Asia and hands on experience in Venture Capital, he has been involved in several start ups that have seen market capitalization over $500m and 1 that reach a peak market cap of $15b. He has managed and overseen start ups in Mining, Shipping, Technology and Financial Services. www.livetradingnews.com

Find out more about HCM Managed Funds

For More Information Contact

Linda Johnson,
Business Development Director – Private Client Group,
Heffernan Capital Management
Sales@Heffcap.com

Bangkok

Suite 53 Athenee Tower
63 Wireless Road,
Lumpini, Pathumwan,
Bangkok 10330 THAILAND
Tel: +66 8 0700 7900
Fax: +6682 2079301
Email : info@heffcap.com

New York

347 5th Avenue, Suite 1402-508 NY, NY 10016
Tel: +1 646-403-9881
Fax: +1 646-403-8014
Email : info@heffcap.com

Singapore

3 Raffles Place #07-01
Bharat Building Singapore 048617
Tel: +65 6329 6408
Fax: +65 6329 9699
Email : info@heffcap.com

Get the Updates Daily

Brokerage, Investment Management, Investment Banking, Emerging Markets Specialists

Managed Trading Account with Integrity and Stability

Eliminate concerns about Stock Market Downturn, Real Estate Downturn, Bernie Madoff’s, Current Events and Diversify at the Same Time;

THE BEST OVERALL MANAGED ACCOUNT SOLUTION, FIND OUT WHY, CONTACT US TODAY

Now is the time to get professional portfolio management services with HCM. Reap the benefits of proper international diversification and positioning in the global market place, with a high degree of customer service.

Our Managed Account Program accommodates those investors who wish to allocate a portion of their risk capital to managed hedge funds.

Find out why we are at the top, select the right investment for inclusion in your portfolio, to receive information and/or get started Click Here

Lower the Exposure of Your Portfolio to the Risks of the Global Marketplace.

Did you know? Major banks around the globe are weighing heavier on relatively shorter term trading speculation than the traditional lending-borrowing business.

Profits can be made on a falling market (by selling short) just as easily as buying a rising market, in addition, derivatives and CFD trading allows profits to be compounded monthly. Let us put the world’s most liquid, but least understood market, in your financial arsenal.

Global Portfolio and World Events

Do you have your portfolio directly linked to the economy?

• Equities
• Interest Rates
• Real-Estate

Which investment benefits are You lacking?

• Recession Proof
• Inflation
• Full Transparency and Audit Trail

Select the right investment for inclusion in your portfolio,to receive information and or get started Click Here

Managed Trading Account

You have a choice. There is No need to own “Companies” .There is No need to own illiquid Company stock, funds or Real Estate”. Do you have your portfolio directly linked to the economy? Or Worse just the Stock Market or Real Estate? Get a Liquid, Transparent/Separately Managed Liquid,Alternative Investment Account in Your Name , where money management, along with capital preservation and liquidity are most important.

Features:

• Professionally supervised by traders
• Risk/Money management (very important to us)
• Trades only occur with the most liquid spot markets
• High degree of liquidity
• Excellent Risk-to-Reward ratio
• Profits possible regardless of direction of the market
• Portfolio diversification: currencies, commodities, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ADRs

Benefits:

• No one can withdraw funds other than the client
• The clients deposit direct to custodian
• The trader can only trade
• The investor’s funds remain in the client’s OWN NAME.
• The investor’s funds are held by an independent institution .
• Clients have direct access to their account, 24 hours a day

Our Goals For You:

• Capital Preservation
• Income Generation
• Security
• Quality Service
• Planning for the Future

Select the right investments for inclusion in your portfolio, to receive information and or get started Click Here

Your use of any of the Websites or any of the Services (defined below) constitutes your agreement to be bound by and comply with the Website Terms and Conditions and your consent to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information as described in the Privacy Policy. If you do not so agree and consent, you are not authorized to visit or use our Websites or the Services.

Be extremely careful, investing in securities carries a high degree of risk; you may likely lose some or all of the investment. You must also accept that opinions on stock markets change minute to minute, opinions expressed my change at any time without warning. Opinions maybe influenced by ad sales and other financial consideration. This site does not offer any assistance in making financial decisions.

Read the Terms of Service

China’s shares fell to their lowest levels in nearly 30 months as pessimism about the country’s economy and combined with tight liquidity ahead of China’s National Day holiday break that will close markets there all of next week.

“It’s hardly surprising that traders are looking to book short-term profits,” said Ben Potter, strategist at IG Markets in Sydney. “No one has any confidence in trying to let profits run by holding positions over the weekend; there’s simply too much uncertainty in the world at the moment.”

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 2.3% to 17592.41, led by losses in Chinese banks and property plays. Its losses for the quarter hit 21%, accounting for most of the index’s 24% loss so far this year. China’s Shanghai Composite, which slipped 0.3% to 2359.22 on Friday, slumped 16% for the quarter. India’s Sensex lost 1.5% to 16453.76, part of its 13% loss over the quarter.

Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average ended fractionally lower at 8700.29, bringing the quarter’s losses to 11%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 and South Korea’s Kospi Composite both were fractionally higher on the day, at 4008.60 and 1769.65, respectively, but also deep in the red for the quarter.

Soft data in the region on Friday underscored investor fears about a double-dip recession for the global economy.

Private-sector credit in Australia rose only 0.2% in August, while industrial production in Japan and South Korea was weaker than expected. The HSBC China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index for September stayed at 49.9, steady with August’s level, but still showing contraction in manufacturing activity.

Southeast Asian markets, hit particularly hard in September as foreign funds pulled out over worries that the West’s problems will cripple growth, ended Friday mixed. Indonesia’s benchmark was up 0.3% to 3549.03, Thai shares lost 1.1% to 916.21 and Singapore stocks slumped 1.2% to 2675.16.

Among individual stocks, mainland developers fell in Hong Kong on worries about a correction in property prices. China Resources Land tumbled 8.5% to HK$8.49 to become the worst-performing blue-chip of the day.

They brought down banks, as investors worried that a significant correction in property prices could mean an accumulation of bad debt from the developers. China Construction Bank dropped 5.7%, Bank of Communication fell 4.9% and Bank of China declined 4.7%, all in Hong Kong.

Many exporter and financial stocks were battered over the quarter. In Japan, shares of Nomura Holdings skidded 28% since end-June, including a 1% drop on Friday, while Sony plunged 29%, and HSBC dropped 22% in Hong Kong.

Fears that China’s growth will slow sharply and damage Australia’s resource-rich economy pressured that sector: BHP Billiton fell 20% in the quarter, while Rio Tinto tumbled 25%.

Asian currencies weren’t spared from the quarter’s sell-off, triggering intervention from South Korea to India to Thailand. The Korean won was among the biggest losers, dropping 9.5% against the U.S. dollar during that time, and South Korea’s currency authorities sold dollars in what traders described as some of the most aggressive intervention since the 2008 financial crisis.

The New Zealand dollar fell sharply Friday after Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services and Fitch Ratings both downgraded the country’s debt, citing its worsening external-debt position and the costs of earthquake recovery. The downgrades underscored that even nations with a relatively stronger debt profile face economic challenges as global growth falters and governments come under increasing fiscal strain.

Its benchmark stock index, however, rose 1.3% to 3343.35, pushing its performance for the year back into positive territory. — The Wall Street Journal

Benchmark oil hovered above $81 a barrel while the dollar dropped against the euro but was steady against the yen.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index shed 0.2 percent to 8,602.96 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.2 percent to 3,989.70. Markets in Hong Kong were closed due to an approaching typhoon.

Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.5 percent to 2,380.34 and the smaller Shenzhen Composite Index dropped 1.5 percent to 1,016.63.

But South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.8 percent to 1,753.52. Benchmarks in Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines were also higher while India and Singapore were down.

Investment sentiment was dented after German Chancellor Angela Merkel late Wednesday suggested that a second bailout package for Greece might have to be renegotiated. Several European leaders want banks to take bigger losses on Greek bonds. France and the European Central Bank oppose the idea.

Earlier this week, financial stocks were buoyed by hopes that a plan was in the works to prevent Greece from defaulting on its debts — an event that some fear would crush banks with significant holdings of the country’s bonds and cause domino-style defaults in other indebted countries such as Italy.

“One of these days, they will manage to get something onto paper. But at the moment, it feels like a big swinging match,” said Ben Potter, market strategist at IG Markets in Melbourne. “Markets always sell off further than they should and snap back further than they should.”

“I think people sort of have fallen into the trap of thinking, ‘The market is rallying, so something good must be happening,’” he said.

Raw materials companies were among the biggest decliners in Asia after prices for commodities like copper and oil fell sharply. Investors fear that Europe’s problems could cause the global economy to slip into another recession, weakening demand for basic materials.

Japanese energy explorer Inpex dropped 1 percent. Nippon Steel fell 3.5 percent. In Australia, mining giants BHP Billiton fell 2.1 percent while Rio Tinto lost 3.3 percent. Newcrest Mining Ltd., the country’s biggest gold miner, fell 2.9 percent.

But technology companies fared better, following on the heels of U.S. tech shares.

South Korea’s LG Electronics soared 12 percent and Samsung Electronics, the world’s top global manufacturer of flat screen televisions, memory chips and liquid crystal displays, rose 4.1 percent. Hynix Semiconductor Inc. gained 5.4 percent.

Shares of POSCO, South Korea’s leading steelmaker, rose 2.2 percent as the company announced the start of work on a cold-rolled stainless steel plant in Turkey, Yonhap news agency said.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., meanwhile, tumbled 12.17 percent following Japanese media reports that a government panel has estimated that compensation payments related to a nuclear leak following the March earthquake and tsunami disaster could reach as high as 5 trillion yen.

On Wall Street on Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.6 percent to close at 11,010.90. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 2.1 percent to 1,151.06. The Nasdaq composite index fell 2.2 percent to 2,491.58

The decline followed three days of gains. Stocks rose earlier this week on hopes that Europe was moving closer to resolving its debt problems. The Dow soared 272 points on Monday, its fourth-largest increase this year, and another 147 points on Tuesday.

Benchmark crude for November delivery rose 3 cents to $81.24 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $3.24, nearly 4 percent, to $81.21 per barrel on the Nymex on Wednesday.

Oil rose sharply earlier this week on optimism Europe was getting a better handle on its debt crisis.

In currencies, the euro rose to $1.3617 from $1.3582 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar was unchanged at 76.53 yen. — AP

The move will have little effect on yuan as a whole because Beijing still tightly controls the currency. But it offers an example of the uncertainties China could face as it moves in fits and starts to loosen its restrictions on the yuan and give it a more central global role.

The drop took place mostly in Hong Kong, a Chinese city that operates under its own set of laws and the only place where the yuan can be traded outside the Chinese mainland. Chinese officials over the past year have transformed the city into a laboratory for yuan liberalization, allowing everything from the issuance of yuan-denominated bonds to yuan-trade settlement to yuan accounts for individual investors.

Until this week, the Hong Kong-traded yuan had remained broadly in line with the official yuan trading range. But market turmoil Thursday and Friday prompted the Hong Kong price to slump at one point to a discount of as much as 2.5% to the mainland yuan, the biggest gap since China began relaxing its currency restrictions about a year ago. The yuan on the mainland trades in a tight band because of Beijing’s restrictions on its currency.

The discrepancy between Hong Kong-traded yuan and mainland yuan, known as of offshore market and the onshore market, respectively, later narrowed somewhat but remained high by historical standards, and late Friday traded at 6.49 yuan to the dollar in Hong Kong, compared with 6.39 yuan in the mainland. The moves fly in the face of currency-market conventional wisdom, which holds that the yuan is set to rise against the U.S. dollar as China soaks up capital and trade flows.

The selling pressure overwhelmed a facility set up by China to sell yuan at the mainland rate, which on Friday was offering investors more dollars for their yuan. Late in the day, Bank of China Ltd.’s Hong Kong arm, the designated clearing bank for the Hong Kong market, said it would temporarily stop buying yuan used for trade settlement as its quarterly quota for such transactions was full.

“We believe the current situation likely resulted from a combination of panic and speculation,” RBS analyst Woon Khien Chia said in a note. The move isn’t expected to hinder wider yuan trading in Hong Kong.

Beijing has promoted greater international use of its currency in order to reduce its dependence on the U.S. dollar, a major component of China’s more than $3 trillion in foreign-currency reserves. For China, Hong Kong represents a test of how the yuan can function in an international setting, helping Beijing prepare for the day when the currency becomes more widely convertible. Yuan deposits in Hong Kong totaled 572.2 billion yuan (roughly $90 billion) at the end of July, and Bank of China has estimated that could rise to 800 billion yuan by the end of the year, as investors expecting yuan appreciation pile in.

Liberalizing too fast carries risks. Though Beijing dropped the yuan de-facto peg to the U.S. dollar more than a year ago and has let it appreciate since, China’s tight currency controls have kept it below where global investors believe it should be valued. That makes its export sector more competitive in global markets.

Market turmoil also roiled the market for yuan nondeliverable forwards, which are offshore derivatives that track the value of the yuan but can’t be exchanged for the currency. The dollar one-year forward on Friday was bid as high as 6.47 yuan against the domestic spot rate of 6.39 yuan, implying expectations of a 1.3% yuan fall over the coming months.

Until now, global investors have largely adopted a strategy of shorting the dollar for the yuan on expectations that Beijing would continue to allow its currency to rise. In fact, desire for yuan offshore has caused the Chinese currency traded in Hong Kong to boast a premium over its mainland counterpart at most times.

Now, worries of an economic recession around the globe and a Greek debt default are driving investors back into the relatively safety of the U.S. dollar, leading many investors to sell yuan and other currencies for dollars.

Many analysts don’t expect Friday’s switch to last for long, partly because the potential arbitrage opportunities resulting from such a spread could lead to more speculative trading in yuan, something loathed by the Chinese government. Beijing has tried to maintain a narrow spread between offshore and onshore yuan to limit such arbitrage opportunities, they said.

If the spread persists said Tim Condon, Singapore-based chief Asia economist with ING Groep NV, “all the big Chinese banks with operations in Hong Kong could just take the other side of the trade” and sell dollars against yuan offshore. — The Wall Street Journal

“This type of move was inevitable. Traders are now facing up to fact that central banks could be coming to the bottom of the rescue measures barrel,” said Kara Ordway, a currency strategist at City Index in Sydney.

The G-20 pledged to take “strong and coordinated” action to stabilize the global financial system, with shares also getting a boost from reports that China’s national pension fund received approval to inject more than $1.56 billion into the stock market.

Still, “there appeared to be nothing in the way of concrete new action and markets were generally underwhelmed,” said Sue Trinh, a senior currency strategist at RBC Captial Markets

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index ended down 1.6% at 3903.20 after briefly trading in positive territory, while South Korea’s Kospi lost 5.7% to end at 1697.44. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index ended down 1.4% at 17668.83, after trading down as much as 3%, and the Shanghai Composite Index was 0.4% lower at 2433.16. India’s Sensex was down 1.2% in afternoon trade. Japan’s markets were closed for a holiday.

DJIA futures were up 49 points in screen trade.

Indonesian shares ended up 1.7% after plunging 8.9% Thursday. Among other Asean markets, Philippine shares ended down 5.1%, the biggest one-day percentage drop in nearly three years, while Thai shares fell 3.5% in afternoon trade.

Growth-sensitive commodity plays continued to bear the brunt of the selling amid sharp drops in metals prices. Heavyweight BHP Billiton dropped 3% in Sydney and Posco shed 6.2% in Seoul. In Hong Kong, Jiangxi Copper dropped 2% and its Shanghai-listed shares fell 3.3%.

“The triple-whammy of weak [manufacturing purchasing managers' index] in China and the euro zone, plus a downbeat assessment from the Federal Reserve about the long-term economic outlook has sparked sharp falls in commodity prices in the last 24 hours,” said economists at Capital Economics.

In Hong Kong, Swire Pacific was the worst performer among blue chips, falling 6.4% after it said late Thursday it is reconsidering spinning off its property arm by listing it in Hong Kong by way of introduction, meaning it won’t raise any money through the listing. — The Wall Street Journal