May 27, 2006	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 28, 1427

HONG KONG, May 26: Asian stocks rebounded Friday in a continued rollercoaster ride, with investors taking courage from gains on Wall Street after US growth figures suggested the recent panic over interest rates might be overdone.

Dealers said it was a relief to see solid gains after the battering the markets have taken over the past few weeks on fears the US Federal Reserve could hike rates further than expected to dampen growth and inflation.

Sydney was up 1.55 per cent and back above the key 5,000 points level, Tokyo, rose 1.77 per cent and in Hong Kong, up 1.26 per cent, the view was that the recent losses had been overdone and there was now an opportunity to get back into the market. Mumbai climbed 1.34 per cent.

TOKYO: Share prices closed 1.77 per cent higher as gains on Wall Street and bargain-hunters helped the market rebound in a rollercoaster week.

The Nikkei-225 index gained 277.01 points to 15,970.76. Volume was 1.65 billion shares, down slightly from 1.69 billion Thursday when the market fell 1.34 per cent.

HONG KONG: Share prices closed 1.26 per cent higher tracking Wall Street’s gains overnight as the latest US economic data helped investors put aside interest rate worries and focus instead on attractive valuations of local stocks.

SYDNEY: Share prices rallied 1.55 per cent, sending the benchmark SP/ASX 200 index above the key 5,000 points level on the back of a recovery on Wall Street and stronger commodity prices.

SINGAPORE: Share prices closed 1.69 per cent higher, lifted by gains in property stocks ahead of the announcement of the winning bid for the city-state’s first gaming licence.

KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed 0.73 per cent higher, with investors encouraged by stronger regional markets to seek out blue chips.

WELLINGTON: Share prices rose 0.52 per cent as local investors reacted positively to firmer world markets.

The NZSX-50 gross index rose 18.93 points to close at 3,599.43 on turnover worth 152.6 million New Zealand dollars (97.2 million US).

MUMBAI: Share prices extended their gains for a second day to close up 1.34 per cent, led by domestic fund buying in large-cap stocks as the market was cheered by a rally on Wall Street.—AFP