HONG KONG -- Asian markets Friday bounced back from two days of losses as upbeat corporate results in the United States put investors back in a buying mood.
Hong Kong gained 1.71 percent, Sydney 0.97 percent and Shanghai added 1.85 percent while Tokyo was 0.15 percent higher.
Investors took their cue from Wall Street's 1.33 percent jump after a number of firms including McDonald's, AT&T and pharmaceutical giant Merck all announced better than expected third quarter results.
TOKYO: Up 0.15 percent. The Nikkei-225 rose 15.82 points to 10,282.99. Investors were turning their attention to companies' outlooks for the rest of the financial year to March, Shinichiro Matsushita, an analyst at Daiwa Securities, told Dow Jones Newswires. Worries about the financial woes of Japan Airlines continued to cast a shadow over the market. JAL shares tumbled 6.6 percent to 114 yen.
HONG KONG: Up 1.71 percent. The Hang Seng Index finished 379.21 points up at 22,589.73. The market finished the week at a high not seen since August 1 last year.
SYDNEY: Up 0.97 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 added 46.6 points to 4,859.4. “We're definitely seeing most of the strength coming through from banks,” said CommSec market analyst Juliette Saly.
SHANGHAI: Up 1.85 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, was up 56.44 points to 3,107.85. The key index rose 4.4 percent over the week.
SEOUL: Up 0.60 percent. The KOSPI ended up 9.84 points at 1,640.17.
SINGAPORE: Up 1.24 percent. The Straits Times Index gained 33.37 points to 2,715.34. Investors snapped up bargains after recent declines, dealers said.
KUALA LUMPUR: Up 0.56 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index lost 7.08 points to 1,267.10. JAKARTA: Up 1.43 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index rose 34.77 points to 2,467.95.
MANILA: Down 1.53 percent. The composite index gained 44.27 points to 2,932.99.
WELLINGTON: Up 0.41 percent. The NZX-50 rose 13.24 points to close at 3,214.93.
MUMBAI: Up 0.13 percent. The 30-share Sensex index rose 21.07 points to 16,810.81.
