Asian Stocks Finish Lower as BOJ Posts Decline in Japanese Households' Financial Assets

Asian equities staged a broad decline on Monday after the Bank of Japan reported the second straight quarterly decline in financial assets held by Japanese households and as the region’s stock markets followed Friday’s Wall Street drop amid uncertain prospects for the upcoming US presidential campaign debates.

Markets in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Shanghai fell, as did other regional exchanges, with Australia trading flat.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 edged down 1.25% as last week’s rally following decisions by the US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan to hold their benchmark interest rates unchanged at their separate September policy meetings faded. The Bank of Japan reported that financial assets held by Japanese households at the end of the second quarter fell 1.7% year-on-year, the second straight quarterly decline.

Leading the upside were frozen-foods purveyor Nicherei (NCHEY, 2871:Tokyo), up 5.5%; followed by mobile-game maker DeNA (DNACF, 2432:Tokyo), up 2.1%; and then Nikon (NINOY, 7731:Tokyo), up 1.9%. On the downside were electronic components-maker TDK Corp. (TTDKY, 6762:Tokyo), off 6.3%, and then insurer T&D Holdings (TDHOY, 8795:Tokyo), off 5.8%.

The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index retreated 1.56% in the wake of Friday’s downmarket on Wall Street, and similar declines in Shanghai and Tokyo. Leading the scant upside were China Mengniu Dairy (2319:HK), up 0.3%; followed by Hang Seng Bank (11:HK), up 0.2%; and then utility conglomerate Power Assets Holdings (6:HK), up 0.1%. On the downside were tech-manufacturer AAC Technologies (2018:HK), off 4.7%; and then developer China Resources Land (1109:HK), off 3.9%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 1.76% to 2,980.43.

On the other exchanges, the S. Korean Kospi lost 0.34%; the Taiwan TWSE fell 0.97%; the Australian ASX 200 traded flat; the Singapore Straits Times Index declined 0.25%; the This Set stepped back 0.18%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was off 1.32%.