HONG KONG, Dec 7: Asian stocks closed mostly higher on Wednesday with offshore funds and bargain hunting returning to the markets which helped Tokyo to resume its upward trend and Seoul to another record close.
Dealers said the improvement in broader sentiment reflected overnight gains on Wall Street and possibly marked an end to a recent consolidation, while local factors also contributed to the performance.
TOKYO: Share prices posted modest gains as investors continued to bet on better times ahead for Japanese companies with the economy on the mend.
Dealers said modest gains on Wall Street overnight as well as the ongoing weakness of the yen had helped to shore up market sentiment after losses Tuesday sparked by profit-taking.
The Nikkei-225 index rose 61.28 points or 0.40 per cent to 15,484.66.
HONG KONG: Share prices closed 0.96 per cent higher Wednesday on a fresh inflow of institutional funds amid expectations that the market will trend higher in the near term.
The Hang Seng Index closed up 144.34 points at 15,134.95. Turnover was 22.02 billion Hong Kong dollars (2.8 billion US dollars).
SYDNEY: Share prices closed 0.17 per cent higher but trade overall was largely directionless after a lacklustre Wall Street lead and modest domestic economic growth figures.
The SP/ASX 200 index added 7.9 points 0.17 per cent to 4,623.9. Volume was 1.07 billion shares worth 3.82 billion dollars (US$2.87 billion).
Among the resources stocks, BHP Billiton rose two cents to 21.85 dollars and Rio Tinto jumped 85 cents to 63.84 dollars.
SINGAPORE: Share prices closed 0.15 per cent higher, supported by gains in shipper Neptune Orient Line (NOL) after it announced its cash distribution plans.
CapitaLand rose two cents to 3.30 and City Developments edged up 10 cents to 8.30, while Keppel Land dropped four cents to 3.64.
KUALA LUMPUR: Share prices closed 0.59 per cent higher after the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research think-tank raised its 2005 growth forecast to 5.3 per cent from 4.9 per cent earlier.
The Composite Index was up 5.20 points to 891.67. Volume was 314.75 million shares, worth US$186 million.
Among blue chips, Tenaga Nasional was flat at 9.65 ringgit, while Telekom Malaysia gained 0.05 to 9.20.
JAKARTA: Share prices closed sharply higher, adding 2.49 per cent to extend gains on hopes the government’s new economic team will be able to deliver better policies.
The Composite Index rose 27.930 points to 1,151.365 on 2.19 billion shares worth 1.85 trillion rupiah (185.83 million dollars.)
WELLINGTON: Share prices closed little changed with investors sidelined ahead of a decision by the central bank on interest rates.
The NZSX-50 gross index rose 2.42 points to 3,227.57 on turnover of 149 million dollars (106.0 million US).
MUMBAI: Share prices closed 0.91 per cent higher on renewed buying by foreign funds in line with a firmer tone on most regional markets.
The 30-share Sensex rose 80.28 points to 8,895.81. Volumes were moderate at 27.6 billion rupees (US$613 million) as 1,278 stocks gained.
—AFP
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