Wall Street performance boosts Asian markets
Wall Street performance boosts Asian markets
TOKYO (AFP): Asia-Pacific stock markets ended stronger
yesterday amid year-end window dressing and easing concerns over
South Korea's financial crisis following a strong overnight
performance on Wall Street.
Posting gains were the stock markets in Tokyo, Hong Kong,
Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Jakarta, Taipei, Shanghai and
Auckland. Seoul and Manila were shut for a holiday while
interest-rate concerns depressed Singapore.
Tokyo posted a 3.3-percent rebound on the year's final trading
day, with investors reacting positively to a global pledge of
support to cash-strapped South Korea, brokers said.
But, after a year marked by economic and financial woes in
Japan and in the rest of Asia, the key Nikkei index ended at
15,258.74 -- 4,187.26 points or 21.5 percent lower than the first
trading day on January 6.
It was the lowest annual closing in 12 years.
In Hong Kong, share prices rose 2.4 percent in pre-New Year
window dressing following overnight gains on Wall Street, dealers
said.
Frances Ng, an analyst with AGS Investment Services Ltd, said
despite the gains the market was unstable.
"Today's market is mainly encouraged by significant gains on
Wall Street and derivative-led buying at the end of this month...
How about tomorrow? No one can be sure," said Ng.
The key Hang Seng Index gained 252.22 points to close at
10,755.21, following Wall Street's 1.5-percent gain overnight.
In Singapore, blue-chip stocks ended barely lower amid weak
sentiment arising from a second round of interest rate increases
announced in less than a month by key banks.
Analysts said the rate hike dealt yet another blow to the
property sector, already jittery about oversupply, raising
concerns among home owners about falling property values and
increasing mortgage costs.
The blue-chip Straits Times Industrials index of the Stock
Exchange of Singapore fell 3.11 points to end at 1,514.83 while
the broader All-Singapore index was up 1.83 points to 422.25.
In Sydney, Australian shares rose almost 1 percent as
institutions sought to end the last full day of the year on a
high note amid optimistic waves from U.S. and European markets,
brokers said.
The Australian Stock Exchange's key indicator, the All
Ordinaries index, closed up 25.1 points at 2,601.4.
In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's key stock index surged 3.6 percent
on year-end institutional window-dressing and boosted by
speculation of mergers in the banking sector.
"Local funds were buying up bluechip stocks especially Malayan
Banking Bhd. and Sime Darby Bhd," said Soh Meng Hui, head of
research at Kuala Lumpur City Securities.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange's 100-share weighted composite
index soared 20.73 points to end at 589.39.
In Bangkok, Thai share prices closed up 2.0 percent on
speculative buying in banking and energy stocks in thin trading,
dealers said.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) broad-based index rose
7.05 points to 365.82 points, while the SET-50 select index
gained 0.68 points to 25.55 points.
In Shanghai, the B shares, nominally reserved for foreign
investors, closed 2.2 percent higher buoyed by sharp gains in
Hong Kong, analysts said.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange's B share index closed 1.19 points
higher at 55.38 points while the A share index of locally-traded
stocks fell 6.46 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,244.77 points.
In Taipei, Taiwanese share prices rose 0.9 percent, led by
plastics, construction and food stocks, as an overnight rise on
Wall Street boosted sentiment, dealers said.
The Taiwan Stock Exchange weighted price index rose 69.12
points to 8,145. 77.
In Auckland, New Zealand stocks gained 1.5 percent on the back
of offshore buying.
The NZSE-40 index added 33.32 points to close at 2,292.29 on a
turnover of NZ$27.73 million (US$16 million).
In London, the FT-SE 100 index rose by 15.8 points to 5,128.2
in early trading. In Paris the CAC-40 index gained 22.41 points
to 2,961.87.
In Frankfurt, the DAX index of 30 leading shares rose by 50.67
points to 4,248.04.