By V. Phani Kumar, Colin Ng & Philip Vahn
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Asian stock markets ended mixed Thursday, with Japanese shares skidding as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group's capital-raising plans raised concern about equity dilution while a strong yen hurt exporters.
South Korean shares advanced on strong foreign-fund purchases of recent laggards such as exporters, while Malaysian shares were lifted by a strong debut for mobile- service provider Maxis.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Average finished 1.3% lower at 9,549.47, while the broader Topix index fell for a seventh session, by 1.5%.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gave up 0.9% and South Korea's Kospi rose 1%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2%, Taiwan's Taiex slipped 0.1% and China's Shanghai Composite advanced 0.5%.
In afternoon trading, the Sensex fell 0.6% in Mumbai, while the Straits Times Index advanced 1.2%.
Analysts said some markets were pausing for breath after recent gains in the absence of clear cues from Wall Street.
"It looks as though the market is going to consolidate for a little bit until we start to get some firmer positive direction out of the U.S." said Wilson HTM client adviser Joseph Pagliaro.
"People are looking to lock in profits. It's still a rational consolidation after the Hang Seng Index reached 23,000 recently, but we could still see the market at a higher level by the end of the year," said Steve Cheng, associate director at Shenyin Wanguo.
Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU 10,426, -11.11, -0.11%) futures were recently down 47 points in screen trade, after losing 11 points overnight.
Japanese investors were fretting about a recent spate of capital raisings in a weak market, said Shinichiro Matsushita, market analyst at Daiwa Securities. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MTU 5.36, -0.12, -2.19%) (JP:8306 484.00, -3.00, -0.62%) fell 3.7% after the bank said on Wednesday it planned to bolster its capital base by issuing 1 trillion yen ($11.1 billion) in new shares. Read full story on MUFG fund-raising and its impact.
Some other banks fell on concerns they may soon announce similar capital-raising plans, with Mizuho Financial Group (MFG 3.75, -0.02, -0.53%) (JP:8411 166.00, -4.00, -2.35%) skidding 6.6% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (JP:8316 2,850, -180.00, -5.94%) (SMFJ.Y 3.13, -0.24, -7.12%) shedding 4.6%.
Exporters also lost ground as the yen strengthened against the U.S. dollar, with Sony Corp. (SNE 28.25, -0.20, -0.70%) (JP:6758 2,525, 0.00, 0.00%) falling 2.2% and Toyota Motor Corp. (TM 79.39, -0.92, -1.15%) (JP:7203 3,550, -20.00, -0.56%) giving up 1.7%.
Elsewhere, a set of strong share debuts came under the spotlight in the region.
In Malaysia, shares of Maxis (MAXS.F 0.00, 0.00, 0.00%) were up at 5.41 ringgit ($1.60) in late trading from its initial public offering at 5 ringgit. The company had earlier raised $3.3 billion for its parent Maxis Communications Bhd., which will use the money to expand operations in India and Indonesia. Market participants said the listing of Maxis will likely boost the market's liquidity and may spur greater interest from foreign investors and elevate Bursa Malaysia's status in the international arena.
