November 23, 2006	Thursday	Ziqa'ad 1, 1427

HONG KONG, Nov 22: Asian stocks rallied to a sharply higher close on Wednesday with investors moving in after a meek and mixed performance by the markets over the past week.

A squaring up of positions helped Tokyo to a rise of 1.14pc while Hong Kong gained 1.28 per cent and managed a record close, and this lent support to benchmarks elsewhere in the region.

TOKYO: Share prices rallied as investors set aside worries over the local economy and scooped up beaten-down stocks.

Dealers said many participants were squaring their positions on the eve of market holidays in Japan and the United States on Thursday.

The Nikkei-225 gained 180.09 points or 1.14 per cent to 15,914.23. Volume rose to 1.75 billion shares from 1.65 billion on Tuesday.

HONG KONG: Share prices finished 1.28 per cent higher, with the index closing at another record high, led by China Mobile and other mainland-linked stocks.

SYDNEY: Share prices closed 1.64 per cent higher, buoyed by fresh interest in the key resource stocks and as a surprise offer for flag carrier Qantas sparked sharp gains in the stock.

The media sector has already seen a series of deals following the recent liberalisation of ownership rules, with consolidation in the industry expected in a big way next year, and so the Qantas news put more companies in the spotlight.

JAKARTA: Share prices rose 1.43 per cent to close at a new record finish Wednesday, on the back of buying in blue chip stocks by foreign investors.

WELLINGTON: Share prices closed 0.09 per cent lower in very heavy trade. The benchmark NZX-50 slipped 3.58 points to 3,817.60 on turnover worth 406 million dollars (270 million US).

MUMBAI: Share prices closed up 0.66 per cent to a fresh record high as overseas funds continued to buy heavily into index and mid-cap companies.—AFP