HONG KONG, March 25: Asian stocks resumed their rollercoaster ride on Tuesday with benchmarks heading sharply higher on Wall Street’s lead and hopes the US economic outlook might improve.US shares powered higher as a sharply higher price announced for the takeover of troubled investment bank Bear Stearns eased concerns about a financial sector meltdown.
News of a surprise rebound in existing home sales also brightened the mood on Wall Street, where analysts said sentiment appeared to be stabilizing after a dismal start to 2008.
Hong Kong shined on the day with 6.4 per cent leap, Tokyo rose 2.12 per cent, Sydney gained 3.7 per cent, Mumbai gained 6.07 per cent, Singapore was up 2.47 per cent, Jakarta was up 3.4 per cent, and Kuala Lumpur was 2.4 per cent higher.
TOKYO: Japanese share prices jumped more than two per cent after gains on Wall Street sparked by an increased offer for troubled US bank Bear Stearns and a surprise rebound in existing home sales.
Dealers said the move by JP Morgan Chase to raise its offer for Bear Stearns fivefold had eased concerns about the depth of the woes in the US financial sector.
The Nikkei-225 index rose 265.13 points to end at 12,745.22. Volume rose to 1.9 billion shares from 1.6 billion on Monday.
Stocks opened higher after the Dow Jones index gained 1.53 per cent Monday on news of the increased bid for Bear Stearns of 10 dollars per share, up from an initial fire-sale price of two dollars.
The Bear Stearns deal raised hopes that credit markets will stabilise soon, said Yoshinori Nagano, chief strategist at Daiwa Asset Management.
I expect the local market to stay on the recovery track for a week or so, with the Nikkei possibly touching the 13,000 level, Nagano said.
HONG KONG: Hong Kong share prices closed up 6.4 per cent, tracking Wall Street after better than expected US housing data and JP Morgan’s improved bid for troubled bank Bear Stearns.
The Hang Seng index closed up 1,356.30 points at 22,464.52, one of the market’s strongest performances of the year.
What we saw today was a broad-based rally led by large-caps, as the market got its momentum from Wall Street, said Anthony Lok, managing director at BOCI Research. The rescue of Bear Stearns has certainly helped.But he cautioned that the gains would not likely be sustained in the near term.
Business conditions remain tough, Lok said.
SYDNEY: Australian share prices soared 3.7 per cent as extended gains on Wall Street tempted investors back to the market.
Dealers said gains overnight on Wall Street saw investors return to the Australian market after a four-day Easter weekend to snap up stocks, particularly in the financial sector.
The S&P/ASX 200 gained 190.9 points to close at 5,318.4. Turnover was 1.5 billion shares worth 6.95 billion dollars (6.3 billion US).
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian share prices closed 2.4 per cent higher Tuesday due to the overnight rally on Wall Street.
The composite index closed up 28.93 points at 1,229.95.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand share prices rose 0.13 per cent as investors traded cautiously despite sharp rises in many other regional markets.
The benchmark NZX-50 gross index rose 4.57 points to close at 3,430.28 on turnover worth 138.0 million dollars (110.6 million US) on its first day of trading after the Easter break.
MUMBAI: Indian share prices surged 6.07 per cent on strong institutional buying after a Wall Street rally led to a surprise rebound in existing home sales in the US.
Dealers said banking, property and software stocks rose on bargain hunting, as the benchmark Sensex posted its second highest points-wise single day gain.
This is a relief rally after the sharp corrections last week. Bargain hunting was strong but global trends will have to be watched, said Advait Date, a dealer with brokerage BHH Securities.—AFP
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