November 9, 2001	Friday	Shaba’an 22, 1422

TOKYO, Nov 8: Asia’s major stock markets made gains on the back of bargain-hunting on Thursday, with investors seeking shares in firms with solid earnings.

The trend was most evident in Tokyo, Seoul and Singapore, with key index rises of up to 2.0 per cent. Hong Kong surged even higher with investors going for stocks seen benefiting from China’s imminent entry to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Tokyo’s headline index gained 1.4 per cent as players hunted for issues with solid earnings but some banking shares remained depressed on bad loan fears, brokers said.

The Nikkei 225 average of the Tokyo Stock Exchange closed up 146.81 points at 10,431.79.

Investors closely watched the release of mid-term earnings reports, said Daiwa Securities SMBC equity manager Kazunori Jinnai.

Daiwa SMBC’s Jinnai said investors had bought shares in Toyota Motor Corp. on expectations of solid earnings as the top Japanese carmaker prepared to announce its interim results after the closing bell.

HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices rose 2.6 per cent on selective institutional buying on expectation the territory’s economy will benefit from China’s accession to WTO.

The key Hang Seng index gained 268.83 points to close at 10,538.62.

SYDNEY: Australia’s share market rose 0.5 per cent led by the banking sector on the back of gains in National Australia Bank due to a stock buy-back announcement.

The All Ordinaries index rose 14.9 points to 3,205.30 while the SP/ASX 200 increased 16.8 points to 3,269.40.

SINGAPORE: Singapore share prices closed 0.3 per cent higher as the market saw the 8.7 per cent drop in half-yearly profit for Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (SingTel) at the top end of expectations.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed 1.1 per cent higher led by gains in select blue chips and lower liners.

The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange’s composite index rose 6.31 points to finish at 598.57.

MUMBAI: Share prices closed 1.5 per cent higher on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on active trader and fund purchases, with gains led by blue chip Larsen et Toubro.

The benchmark 30 share BSE-sensitive index rose 46.03 points to close at 3,059.97.

JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices closed 1.1 per cent higher after donor countries under the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) pledged loans of $3.14 billion for the 2002 fiscal year.

WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s stockmarket drifted down one per cent on light directionless trade. The NZSE40 index was down 20.66 points to 1,974.23 .

Contact Energy, under full take-over offer, fell three cents to $4.06 and recent market favourite Fisher and Paykel took a tumble, falling 66 cents to $13.74.—AFP