• Home
• /
• Business

Asian markets rally on positive US, Japanese economic figures

Japan’s benchmark stock index notched its biggest one-day percentage gain in nearly six years after figures showed that the economy accelerated in the fourth quarter, growing at an annual pace of 3.7 percent.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index surged nearly 560 points, or 4.3 percent, to close at 13,626.5, its biggest percentage gain since March 2002. Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng index jumped 3.7 percent to settle at 24,021.7.

Major indexes in South Korea and Taiwan finished more than 4 percent higher, and benchmarks in Australia and Indonesia rose more than 2 percent.

Sentiment also got a lift from numbers released Wednesday showing an unexpected 0.3 percent rise in US retail sales last month, easing concerns about American consumers’ willingness to spend despite economic uncertainty. Analysts had predicted a 0.3 percent decline. The Dow Jones industrials rose 1.5 percent to 12,552.24, while the Nasdaq composite rose 2.3 percent to 2,373.9.

Concerns over a US economic slowdown seemed to ease a bit in the Asian markets,’ said Edward Lien of Fubon Securities in Taiwan.

In Tokyo, consumer finance companies led the market. Acom Co. surged 8.1 percent, while Promise Co. jumped 7.9 percent.

Semiconductor shares rallied on rises in US high-tech shares. Advantest Corp. surged 11.6 percent, Elpida Memory soared 8.2 percent and Tokyo Electron rose 6.2 percent.

Investors were expected to turn their focus next to testimony from Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Ben Bernanke before a Senate committee on banking and housing later in the day.

If Mr. Bernanke shows pessimism on the economy even after the rate cut, the Japanese market will likely fall toward near 13,000 in one day,’ said Hidenao Miyajima, chief strategist at Lehman Brothers in Tokyo.

In Hong Kong, export stocks in were among the big gainers there, with consumer goods trader Li & Fung rising 4.9 percent and clothing company Esprit gaining 6.3 percent. Chinese insurer Ping An rebounded 5.9 percent.

The rally in Hong Kong is boosted by the improved consumer confidence in the U.S.,’ said Castor Pang, a strategist at Sun Hung Kai Financial strategist, before he cautioned that the upward trend is yet to be consolidated.’

More economic data to be released next week will affect the near-term performance of the financial markets in the US and Hong Kong, he said.

In South Korea, Samsung Electronics Co. rose 3.3 percent, shrugging off a raid on its headquarters by special prosecutors investigating alleged corruption at the Samsung Group conglomerate.

Steelmaker Posco gained 4.4 percent, while Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., the world’s biggest shipbuilder, rose 4.3 percent.

Electronic shares in Taiwan rose strongly, lifted by the strong rise Wednesday of the tech-heavy Nasdaq index. Hon Hai Precision Industry surged 6.7 percent. MediaTek rose 6.8 percent.

Indices also rose in China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. The only major Asian stock benchmark to lose ground was the Philippines Stock Exchange Index, which fell 0.4 percent to 3,211.6.

In Tokyo currencies, the dollar was trading at 108.31 yen at 4:50 p.m. (0750 GMT) Thursday, down from 108.27 yen late Wednesday in New York. The euro rose to US$1.4581 from $1.4573.