November 08, 2006	Wednesday	Shawwal 15, 1427

HONG KONG, Nov 7: Asian stocks rallied into the record books on Tuesday after strong gains on Wall Street were notched-up ahead of the midterm congressional elections in the United States.

An influx of capital from outside the region was cited in many markets for supporting the surge which resulted in Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Jakarta, and Wellington all closing at record highs.

Manila struck a fresh nine-year while Kuala Lumpur was trading at its best levels in six years after cracking the 1,000 point level and Shanghai was again trading at its best levels for five years.

However, many markets still closed off their highs amid concerns the benchmarks had gone too far, particularly in Hong Kong after the Hang Seng breached strong resistance at 19,000 points for the first time ever.

Mumbai also continued to trade heavily into record territory after the opening bell but closed lower after the profit takers moved in.

Dealers there said investors were more inclined to wait for the election results due out in the early afternoon Asian time and for Wall Street's reaction before re-positioning themselves.

TOKYO: Share prices closed mixed in subdued trade ahead of the US mid-term elections and upcoming economic data.

The Nikkei-225 index rose 28.65 points or 0.18 per cent to 16,393.41. Volume was 1.50 billion shares, down from 1.56 billion Monday.

Takahashi said market participants were also waiting for the release Friday of Japan's machinery orders data for September.

The market additionally was digesting remarks from Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui who said the central bank would take pre-emptive action to quell any incipient spike in inflation that, if not dealt with immediately, would require even more aggressive increases in interest rates later on.

HONG KONG: Share prices closed flat in volatile trade, coming off record highs as investors turned cautious after the market breached strong resistance at 19,000 points.

The Hang Seng Index edged up 2.76 points for another all-time closing high of 18,939.31 but this was well off the intraday high of 19,161.38.

Turnover was heavy at 51.7 billion dollars (6.63 billion US).

SINGAPORE: Share prices closed at a record high boosted by property stocks, Wall Street's rebound and amid strong gains across the region.

The Straits Times Index closed up 20.09 points at 2,749.22. Volume was 2.03 billion shares worth 1.67 billion Singapore dollars (1.07 billion US).

KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed up 1.01 per cent at a six-year high on Tuesday after breaking through the key resistance level of 1,000 points.

The composite index rose 9.98 points to 1,003.28. Volume was 875.15 million shares worth 1.22 billion ringgit (334.25 million dollars).

MUMBAI: Share prices closed down 0.2pc after four straight trading days of record gains as investors locked-in profits.

The 30-share benchmark Sensex index closed down 30.23 points to 13,156.66 after reaching its latest record close of 13,186.89 Monday.—AFP