December 12, 2007	Wednesday	Zilhaj 1, 1428

HONG KONG, Dec 11: Asian stocks closed mostly higher on Tuesday as investors traded on speculation the federal reserve will cut US interest rates by at least a quarter point, and possibly even more.

The US Federal Reserve was expected to announce a 25 basis point cut in its key lending rate later Tuesday to 4.25 per cent after reducing borrowing costs twice since September in a bid to underpin economic momentum.

Tokyo was 0.76 per cent higher, as Taipei advanced 0.47 per cent, Sydney rose 0.80 percent, Wellington gained 0.76 per cent, as Shanghai rose 0.25 per cent and Kuala Lumpur was up 0.6 per cent.

TOKYO: Japanese share prices closed up 0.76 per cent at a one-month high on hopes of another interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve to invigorate the US economy.

The Nikkei-225 index gained 120.33 points to 16,044.72. Volume traded fell to 1.68 billion shares from 1.82 billion shares on Monday.

HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices closed 2.55 per cent higher as rate-sensitive property and banking stocks attracted strong interest ahead of an anticipated interest rate cut in the US.

Dealers said the market was also supported by short-covering with investors accumulating large blue chips, such as China Mobile and HSBC, aside from local properties.

Investors set aside concerns that Beijing might adopt more tightening measures following strong inflation data in November, as China financials and select properties posted gains.

SYDNEY: Australian share prices rose 0.8 per cent, following a positive lead from Wall Street on expectations of a US interest rate cut.

The S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 55.3 points at 6,680.4. Volume traded was 1.72 billion shares worth 6.12 billion Australian dollars (5.43 billion US).

Investors focussed more on the expected cut than UBS AG’s 10 billion US dollar writedown on investments backed by mortgages.

The Swiss investment bank revealed an 11.5 billion US dollar cash injection from the Singapore government and an unidentified Middle Eastern investor.

SINGAPORE: Singapore share prices closed 1.01 per cent higher, in line with regional peers, on expectations another US interest rate cut could help boost the economy.

The Straits Times Index closed up 35.95 points at 3,589.03 on volume of 1.33 billion shares worth 1.75 billion Singapore dollars (1.21 billion US).

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares prices closed 0.6 per cent higher amid hopes that the US Federal Reserves will lower interest rates after a policy meeting later in the day.

The composite index closed up 9.03 points at 1,434.16 on volume of 739.74 million shares valued at 1.45 billion ringgit (438 million dollars).

JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices closed up 0.7 per cent to reach a new record high, driven by buyer anticipation of an interest rate cut by the United States Federal Reserve.

Key gainers included coal giant Bumi Resources, which continued to attract buyers on stronger coal prices, and the country’s sixth largest bank, Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII).

The composite index closed up 20.70 points at 2,810.96 on volume of 4.57 billion shares worth 4.76 trillion rupiah (513.37 million dollars).

WELLINGTON: New Zealand share prices closed 0.76 per cent lower as investors ignored a healthy showing offshore.

The NZX-50 index was down 30.54 points at 4,026.95 on turnover worth 102.99 million dollars (80.07 million US).

MUMBAI: Indian share prices surged 1.81 per cent to a new record close on hopes that the US Federal Reserve will announce a cut in interest rates later in the day.

The benchmark 30-share Sensex index rose 360.21 points to 20,290.89, beating its previous best of 19,977.67 set on Oct 29.—AFP