* Asia shares slide as China GDP data offers no surprises
* Dollar gets a reprieve as China data disappoints fx mkt
* Slump in Japanese exports adds downward pressure on
shares
* European equity futures down 1.4 pct
By Susan Fenton
HONG KONG, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Asian shares fell on Thursday
amid disappointment that robust Chinese growth data offered few
surprises, but the dollar gained some respite as an expected
shift to higher-yielding currencies failed to materialise.
European stock futures <STXEc1> were down 1.4 percent,
while U.S. equity futures <SPc1> were flat.
News that China's economy surged 8.9 percent in the third
quarter, together with bullish September economic data, failed
to inspire equity investors as the data was bang in line with
forecasts. []
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index <> was down 1 percent while
shares in Shanghai <> dipped 0.2 percent.
"The Chinese economy has taken off, but it is flying on one
engine, China's recovery has been impressive but it has been
heavily reliant on government-directed investment funded by
aggressive bank lending," said Brian Jackson, a strategist at
Royal Bank of Canada in Hong Kong.
"To keep the economy moving at a fast pace we need to see a
more broad-based recovery."
The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks traded outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS>, which struck a 15-month high this week, fell
1.2 percent as investors took a breather for a second day. The
Thomson Reuters index of regional shares <.TRXFLDAXPU> was down
0.7 percent.
The dollar bounced off a 14-month low against a basket of
currencies <.DXY>, edging up 0.4 percent on the day to 75.279,
as expectations strong China data would encourage buying of
higher-yielding assets like the Australian and New Zealand
dollars failed to materialise.
The Aussie dollar <AUD=> briefly slipped on disappointment
the China data was not more upbeat, but it quickly recovered.
However, underlying dollar weakness was likely to persist,
dealers said.
"There have not been any factors to alter the global
recovery scenario," said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief forex
strategist, Japan at Barclays Capital in Tokyo, adding that the
bank forecasts the Aussie dollar will rise towards parity
against the dollar.
HYUNDAI TRIPLES PROFIT
Japan's Nikkei index <> fell 0.6 percent with
exporters losing ground. Sentiment was not helped by data
showing Japanese exports slumped 30 percent in September, with
a rising yen <JPY=> aggravating declining demand. []
Equity investors across the region were cautious after
losses on Wall Street but earnings reports continued to suggest
Asia is on a sustainable recovery track.
Japanese car maker Honda Motor Co <7267.T> and tech giant
Toshiba <6502.T> bucked the share slide in Tokyo after
newspaper reports said both were on course to beat their own
projections and post first-half operating profits. Honda shares
rose 1.8 percent while Toshiba gained 3.3 percent.
[] []
In South Korea, Hyundai Motor Co. <005380.KS>, the world's
No. 4 car maker, reported quarterly profit more than tripled to
a record high. Hyundai's shares dipped 0.5 percent though as
the Korean KOSPI <> index slid 1.4 percent, reflecting
concern about recent strength in the Korean won <KRW=> and the
oil price.
Shares in mobile phone and TV manufacturing giant LG
Electronics <066570.KS> skidded 5 percent in reaction to the
company's warning of a slower fourth quarter after
forecast-beating third-quarter profits.
Oil <CLc1> dipped just below $81 a barrel after jumping to
a one-year high at $81.37 on Wednesday on news of a sharp
drawdown in U.S. gasoline stocks. It was quoted at $80.98.
Disappointment that the Chinese economic data was not more
bullish dampened expectations for currency appreciation in
China, prompting the yuan to pullback in non-deliverable
forwards <CNYNDFOR=>.
South Korea treasuries fell, tracking U.S. Treasuries,
after the Bank of England raised anxiety over an exit strategy
[] and on uncertainty over whether Citigroup will
include Korean bonds in its World Government Bond Index.
December treasury bond futures <KTBc1> fell 12 ticks to
108.36.
(Additional reporting by Rie Ishiguro and Masayuki Kitano in
TOKYO; editing by Kazunori Takada)
