Asian stocks continue upward trend, helped by Wall Street rally
Asian stocks continue upward trend, helped by Wall Street rally
Agence France-Presse, Tokyo
Asian bourses continued their recent upward momentum Friday, helped by a strong rally on Wall Street.
Seoul rose for a sixth successive day, while Tokyo, Hong Kong and Taipei were up for a fifth day in a row as investors drew confidence from stability on US markets.
Japanese share prices surged 1.4 percent, with the Nikkei-225 average closing above the symbolic 9,000-point level for the first time in two weeks, dealers said.
The headline index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 126.25 points to end the day at 9,086.13 while the broader Topix index of all issues on the market's first section finished 9.49 points higher at 893.95.
"Retail investors, in particular, seem to have turned more active recently thanks to a steadier performance in the US equity market," said Akihiro Shiroeda, general manager of the investment information department at Nozomi Securities.
"They now seem to think that the US market... will maintain a stable performance in the near-term," he said.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial gained 3.0 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite jumped 3.2 percent.
Share prices in Hong Kong rose 0.4 percent, extending recent gains after rises on Wall Street.
The key Hang Seng index gained 36.92 points to close at 9,613.07.
Share prices in Singapore closed 0.3 percent lower as profit taking set in after five consecutive sessions of gains.
The Straits Times Index ended 4.63 points down at 1,461.39, while the broader All-Singapore Equities Index closed 0.62 points lower at 382.33.
Malaysian share prices rose 2.1 percent on bargain hunting and foreign interest after gains on Wall Street.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange composite index rose 13.32 points to finish at 652.25.
Taiwanese stocks rose 4.1 percent in a technical rebound with sentiment further boosted by strong gains on Wall Street.
The weighted price index closed up 177.36 points at 4,458.17, off an early high of 4,465.99.
Philippine share prices fell 1.2 percent due to the twin bomb blasts in the southern city of Zamboanga that killed seven people.
The Philippine Stock Exchange composite index fell 11.91 points to 1,027.67.
"The market was down because of the Zamboanga bombings and the bomb scares that followed," said Joseph Roxas of Eagle Equities Inc.
"The bombing incident is making the market weaker. That was the factor that prevented the market from following the lead of the major bourses like the US," said Jose Vistan of AB Capital Securities Inc.
Thai stocks rose 2.8 percent in active trade due to impressive earnings posted by the banking and finance sectors and positive sentiment after gains in US markets.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand composite index gained 9.28 points to close at 342.46, while the blue-chip SET 50 index was up 0.69 points at 21.81.
Meanwhile, Indonesian share prices rose 1.6 percent, due to a technical rebound led by Astra International coupled with firmer regional bourses after Wall Street's overnight gains.
The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite index closed up 5.8 points at 360.905.
"The market's volatility prompted investors to take quick gains," BNI Securities dealer Martiana Budiarti said, adding that overall sentiment remains jittery since the weekend Bali bomb attacks.
"The government is doing very little to reassure investors of concerns about the security situation which is expected to cap the rebound in stocks," Budiarti said.