Asia report: Most markets higher as Oz job numbers fall

Markets in Asia ended mostly higher on Thursday, closing after the third and final US presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump finished.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.39% to 17,235.50, with the broader Topix adding 1% to 1,370.80.

Nintendo shares rose 3.34% in Tokyo, after the company hinted on social media that it was going to take at least some of the wraps off its NX gaming console later in the US day.

A number of other shares were also rallying in the country, with apparel giant Fast Retailing up 3.74% and SoftBank rising 1.63%.

Electronics maker Sharp was up 7.69%, after reports that majority owner Hon Hai Precision Industry - better known as Foxconn - was in talks with SoftBank-owned ARM to create a semiconductor chip design facility in Shenzhen.

The yen was trading weaker against the greenback, and was last off 0.29% at JPY 103.72 per $1.

Shares on the mainland were mixed, with the Shanghai Composite flat at 3,084.76, while the Shenzhen Composite finished 0.32% firmer at 2,060.38.

In South Korea, the Kospi was virtually flat, losing 0.02% to 2,040.60, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 0.3% to 23,374.40.

The Democratic and Republican nominees for US president squared off for the final time on live US television during the Asian session, with topics including immigration, the controversial appointment of a Supreme Court justice, and the involvement of Russia-backed hacking in the election.

Oil prices were lower during Asian trading, with Brent crude last off 1.02% at $52.14 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate losing 1.07% to $51.27.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 managed to close slightly higher, adding 0.12% to 5,442.10, underpinned by the energy and materials subindexes, up 1.13% and 0.82% respectively.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics released fresh data showing the total number of jobs dropping by 9,800, a huge miss compared to the Reuters-polled estimate for a 15,000 job increase.

Full-time employment was down 53,000 jobs, while part-time employment improved.

Australia’s unemployment rate still fell by 0.1%, however, to 5.6% as the workforce participation rate fell.

“The net effect of all these factors has been a slight increase in the implied probability of a November rate cut,” noted IG chief market strategist Chris Weston.

“Personally, I don't think this employment report will push the Reserve Bank of Australia to think more seriously about further rate cuts, but there's no doubt it's a poor number.”

A number of Australian resource producers were moving off the back of quarterly production numbers, with Rio Tinto closing up 0.43% in Sydney despite lowering its 2016 guidance for iron ore shipments.

Fortescue shares closed down 1.94%, after it increased its iron ore shipments by 5% year-on-year for the first quarter of its 2017 fiscal year.

BHP Billiton was still riding the wave of its production numbers on Wednesday, finishing up 1.69% in Sydney trading.

New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 was almost flat, losing 0.04% to 6,973.78, led lower by online retail marketplace Trade Me, which was off 4.9% to a three-month low.

A number of online retail stocks around the world had come under pressure in recent weeks, as social media behemoth Facebook launched a facility to advertise and sell items to other users.

The down under dollars were both weaker, with the Aussie last off 0.86% to AUD 1.3062 against the greenback, and the Kiwi weakening 0.22% to NZD 1.3858 per $1.