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TOKYO, Dec 28: Asian stocks ended what was this year’s last day of trade for many of the region’s markets on a high note on Saturday.
However, with many investors away for year-end holidays, dealers said window-dressing featured heavily in thin turnover.
Stocks in Tokyo rose 0.8 percent in half-day trading ahead of Japan’s week-long holiday with investors encouraged by reports the government may inject funds into the country’s ailing banking sector, brokers said.
The Nikkei-225 average of the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 85.01 points from Thursday’s finish to close at 10,542.62 in the market’s final trading session of 2001.
The Topix index of all shares in the first section of the stock exchange ended up 18.41 points at 1,032.14. Japanese market’s will reopen on Saturday next week.
Trading was moderate for a half-day session with volume estimated at 373 million shares, compared with 485 million for a full day on Thursday.
Koizumi was quoted by a ruling party official as saying late Thursday: We will not let an economic crisis occur in February or March, and to do this we will take emergency measures when necessary.
HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices rose 0.6 per cent boosted by gains on Wall Street and year-end window dressing.
The key Hang Seng index gained 72.09 points to close at 11,431.59.
Kitty Chan, associate director of Lippo Securities, said market turnover was thin as most investors were absent for the New Year break.
SYDNEY: Australian shares, boosted by market heavyweights News Corp, National Australia Bank and BHP Billiton, finished the week at a five-month high on thin trading.
The All Ordinaries added 9.1 points or 0.3 per cent to 3,363.8 while the SP/ASX 200 climbed 9.5 points to 3,427.1.
SINGAPORE: Singapore stocks closed 0.9 per cent higher with select blue chips boosted by window-dressing ahead of the year-end.
The Straits Times Index gained 13.97 points to 1,625.98 while the broader All-Singapore Equities Index was up 2.99 points at 426.10.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed 0.6 per cent higher due to continued window-dressing among selected blue chip stocks.
The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange composite index rose 3.92 points to finish at 691.64.
Other than that, there is not much happening in the market, he said.
MUMBAI: Share prices on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) closed 1.7 per cent higher despite continued military tensions on the Indo-Pakistan border.
The benchmark 30-share BSE index rose 52.66 points to close at 3,184.44.
JAKARTA: Indonesian share prices surged 3.2 per cent higher n heavy buying of blue chip stocks during the last two minutes of trade in window-dressing by some institutional investors.
The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite index closed up 12.069 points at 392.036.
WELLINGTON: Strong trading in Telecom pushed the New Zealand share market up just over one per cent, but it was based on thin Christmas trading.
The NZSE-40 capital index ended up 20.96 points at 2060.90 on turnover of US$13 million.
Today there have been buyers in the market and to get the stock they’ve had to pay up, said Rob Josephson of JB Were, comparing the day with Thursday’s moribund trading.—AFP
