Asian Stock Markets Mostly End Lower

Asian stocks markets mostly declined Monday as the excitement over the announcement of the QE3 by the U.S. Fed Reserve faded while concerns over the euro zone crisis and growth slowdown in China also weighed.

Japanese benchmark Nikkei declined 0.45 percent or 40.71 points to 9,069.29, Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 0.19 percent or 6.50 points to 20694.70 and Indian benchmark BSE Sensex declined 0.19 percent while Chinese Shanghai Composite gained 0.32 percent and Chinese Shanghai Composite advanced 0.05 percent.

“Markets face a reality check going into this week. The euphoria emanating from recent Fed, ECB and BoJ actions is fading quickly. The reality of weak growth and underlying structural tensions is coming back to haunt markets, suggesting much more limited upside for risk assets over coming weeks,” said a note from Credit Agricole.

Market sentiment was subdued during Asian trading hours as the renewed concerns over the euro zone debt crisis and the economic slowdown faced by China weighed on it. The disagreement between Germany and France over the formation of a banking union and supervision was accentuating tensions in the single currency block.

Meanwhile, investors are likely to focus on Spain in the coming week as the debt ridden country Saturday insisted that it would not rush to seek a sovereign bailout -- a necessary condition of the European Central Bank’s bond-buying program. The independent stress tests of Spain's banking sector will be published Friday and is likely to show that the actual capital needs by banks could be 50 to 60 billion euros, well below the total 100 billion euros official credit line available and avoid the need for further aid.

The recent economic reports from China, including last week’s HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index, suggest that the world's second biggest economy is on the track for the seventh quarter of a slump in growth in the Q3 of this year. Market participants are concerned to note that China hasn’t yet announced any policy measures though there are clear indications that its economy is weakening.

Adding to the down trend, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgraded the economic growth rates for Asia Pacific citing slowdown in China, ongoing troubles in the euro zone and a weaker recovery in the U.S.

Japanese stocks ended lower, led by declines from exporter and steel makers. Panasonic Corp. declined 2.94 percent and Canon Inc. plunged 3.86 percent while Toyota Motor Corp. fell 1.56 percent and Kobe Steel Ltd. plunged 2.90 percent.

China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. declined 1.14 percent and Aluminum Corp of China Ltd declined 1.22 percent in Hong Kong while Sany Heavy Industry Co Ltd gained 2.12 percent and Anhui Conch Cement Co Ltd. climbed 3.74 percent in Shanghai.

In Seoul, Hyundai Motor Co. gained 1.66 percent and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. advanced 1.92 percent.