Asian shares mixed amid euro debt fears

HONG KONG (AFP):Asian stocks mostly fell Friday as positive US data and bargain buying were overshadowed by eurozone debt, after a warning that a Greek default could be as disastrous as the collapse of Lehman Brothers.

Tokyo’s Nikkei dropped 0.64 percent, or 59.88 points, to 9,351.40 and Seoul lost 0.72 percent, or 14.70 points, to 2,031.93.

In the afternoon Hong Kong fell 0.52 percent and Shanghai fell 0.39 percent a day after both bourses closed at around nine-month lows amid fears of fresh tightening measures in China. Sydney edged up 0.12 percent, or 5.7 points, to 4,484.9.

Some much-needed upbeat news from the United States provided buying impetus early on while the Dow ended in positive territory, adding 0.54 percent.

The Labor Department said new jobless claims fell to 414,000 in the week ending June 11, a decline of four percent from the previous week.

Another report showed that US housing starts grew more than expected last month, rebounding 3.5 percent from April.

The figures provided some relief to investors who are growing concerned about the global recovery, especially in the world’s biggest economy as recent data on jobs and manufacturing have come in well below expectations.

But attention was mostly on Europe, where tension is building over Greece’s debt woes, with one European analyst warning of a “Lehman moment” for the eurozone, referring to US bank Lehman Brothers, whose 2008 collapse preceded the financial crisis. In Athens Prime Minister George Papandreou appealed for unity from his own lawmakers Thursday after two deputies quit and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) insisted there can be no backsliding on agreed austerity measures.

As he tried to get backing for cuts that will allow Greece to receive new funding to avoid default, the premier said: “The challenge before us, the moment we are facing, is historic. “Either Europe will make history or history will wipe out the European Union.”Officials say they are confident eurozone finance ministers will agree at meetings Sunday and Monday on the disbursement of the latest slice of Greece’s 110-billion-euro ($155 billion) bailout loan. But the IMF insists Greece will only get this tranche if it pushes through the latest round of austerity measures it had agreed to earlier. On money markets the euro fetched $1.4164 from $1.4209 late Thursday in New York while it dipped to 114.17 from 114.63 yen in New York.

The dollar eased to 80.58 yen from 80.67 yen. Oil fell, with New York’s main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light sweet crude for July delivery, down 59 cents to $94.36 a barrel and Brent North Sea crude for August shedding 57 cents to $113.45.

Gold opened at $1,528.00-$1,529.00 an ounce in Hong Kong, up from Thursday’s close of $1,526.00-$1,527.00.

In other markets: -- Taipei fell 0.21 percent, or 18.33 points, to 8,636.10. PC giant Acer shed 3.69 percent to Tw$48.35 while TSMC fell 1.72 percent to Tw$74.2. -- Manila closed down 0.48 percent, or 19.97 points, at 4,153.11.

SM Investments was flat at 540 pesos, Philippines Long Distance Telephone shed 2.6 percent to 2,202 pesos and Megaworld was off 0.5 percent at 1.90. -- Wellington shed 0.35 percent, or 12.02 points, to 3,469.59.

Heartland Bank was flat at NZ$0.74 and stock exchange operator NZX rose 3.9 percent to NZ$2.45. Pyne Gould Corp. fell 7.8 percent to NZ$0.36.