Emerging stocks drop led by exporters as oil hurts Saudi shares
By Bloomberg
Emerging-market stocks fell for a second day led by exporters, while oil's retreat weighed on Saudi Arabian shares. Ukrainian bonds declined as rebel-held elections threatened to undermine a two-month-old cease-fire.
LG Chem Ltd. sank to a five-year low in Seoul and Samsung Electronics Co. lost 1.5 percent. Etihad Etisalat Co. slid 10 percent in Riyadh after the phone company's quarterly profit missed estimates. The yield on Ukrainian bonds due in July 2017 climbed to a two-week high, while Russian markets were shut for a holiday. Turkey's shares and lira rose as oil fell to a four- year low, reducing pressure on the nation's trade deficit.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index lost 0.3 percent to 1,007.51 at 11:20 a.m. in London. The Kospi index sank the most in two weeks on concern the won's gain to a six-year high versus the yen will erode the competitiveness of South Korean exporters. Brent crude slid as much as 3.2 percent to $82.08 a barrel in London.
"Much of the Korean market is export driven and we see clearly that the export sector is under severe pressure over the past few weeks as many of their companies compete directly with Japanese exporters," Nathan Griffiths, who helps manage $1.2 billion of emerging-market equities at ING Investment Management in the Hague, said by e-mail. Turkish shares are "benefiting from the knee-jerk reaction to the weak oil price," he said.
Seven out of 10 industry groups in the developing-nation equity gauge fell, led by materials and energy companies. Chemicals manufacturer LG Chem sank 5.8 percent, while Samsung Electronics, the world's largest maker of smartphones, dropped for a second day. Hyundai Motor Co. declined 3.1 percent.
Weaker Currencies
South Korea's won weakened 0.4 percent against the dollar today. It has strenghtened 6 percent versus the yen in the past three months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Currencies in Malaysia and the Philippines also depreciated against the dollar today, while Turkey's lira climbed 0.4 percent to 2.2238. The Borsa Istanbul 100 Index advanced 0.6 percent after increasing 7.5 percent last month, the most among major benchmarks tracked by Bloomberg globally.
Turkey, which depends on oil imports for most of its energy needs, has the biggest balance-of-payments shortfall relative to economic output among developing nations.
In Saudi Arabia, the largest exporter in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, stocks slid 3.6 percent, the biggest retreat among gauges worldwide today. Etihad Etisalat, known as Mobily, fell the most since February 2011. The company reported third-quarter profit plunged more than 70 percent, missing the average of seven analyst estimates.
Ukraine Vote
The yield on Ukrainian 2017 Eurobonds increased 35 basis points to 14.42 percent, rising for a second day. Calling the Nov. 2 ballots in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk a "farce that jeopardizes the entire peace process," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the government will never recognize their results, according to a statement yesterday. As the U.S. and its European allies rejected the vote, the Russian Foreign Ministry said yesterday it "respected" the results.
The yield on Russian Eurobonds due September 2023 rose nine basis points to 5.05 percent. The premium investors demand to own developing-nation debt over U.S. Treasuries was little changed at 295, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. indexes.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index has risen 0.6 percent this year and trades at 11 times projected 12-month earnings, compared with a multiple of 15 for the MSCI World Index, which is up 2.6 percent in 2014, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index sank 1.2 percent led by Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., which reported a 14 percent drop in third-quarter profit.
China Communications Construction Co. rose 9 percent in Hong Kong. China plans a fund to finance construction of infrastructure linking domestic and overseas markets as President Xi Jinping pushes forward with plans to revive the centuries-old Silk Road trading route. Government officials familiar with the matter said funds will be used to build and expand railways, roads and pipelines in provinces part of the strategy to facilitate trade over land and shipping routes.
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