Investors in Asia were quick to react to a report that China has canceled its last round of reserve ratio hikes, sending markets up on Tuesday. The Hang Seng rose 1.7% in Hong Kong, the Shanghai Composite inched up 0.1%, and in Japan the Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.2%.
Markets in Asia reacted to a surge in the price of oil, which crossed the $106 per barrel today. In Hong Kong the Hang Seng Index dipped 0.4% and in Japan the Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.8%. Meanwhile, China's Shanghai Composite Index surged 1.8%.
A slight slip in the price of oil allowed Japanese investors to focus attention on positive employment figures out of the U.S., boosting the Nikkei 225 Index by 0.9%. In Hong Kong the Hang Seng also Index added 0.3%, while the Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.4%.
In Hong Kong HSBC shares rose 1.5% before the company's announcement early today in London that it had missed earnings estimates. The gain helped push the Hang Seng Index up 1.4.% In China the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.9% and in Japan the Nikkei 225 Index added 0.9%.
Chinese policy makers are scratching their heads after a raft of measures meant to cool the country's red-hot real estate market seem to have done little to accomplish their aim. Rising property shares sent Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index up 1.3% Friday, while China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.9%, and in Japan the Nikkei 225 Index inched up 0.1%.
Asian investors brushed aside worries over continuously rising Chinese inflation today, focusing instead on bargain shopping. Energy companies were a major attraction as oil prices surged. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 1.1% and China's Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.9%. In Japan the Nikkei 225 Index edged up 0.6%.
China's National Bureau of Statistics reported that the country's consumer price index rose 4.9% in January. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 1% and in China the Shanghai Composite Index remained virtually unchanged. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index inched up 0.2%.
Investors piled into Chinese stocks after news broke that China's GDP surpassed Japan's for 2010, making the People's Republic the world's second largest economy after the U.S. The Shanghai Composite climbed 2.5% and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng gained 1.3%. In Japan the Nikkei 225 Index advanced 1.1%.
Positive earnings outlooks among some of Japan's major companies continued to boost investor sentiment. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index added 0.4% to close at 10,636. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 0.3% to end the day at 23,484. Markets in China remained closed for Chinese New Year.
Japanese investors were giddy with excitement as positive earnings reports and the announcement of a major merger flooded the news. The Nikkei 225 advanced 1.1% on Friday, while markets in Hong Kong and China remained closed for the Lunar New Year.
Lower than expected earnings numbers from Japanese blue-chip companies dragged the Nikkei lower Thursday, as did the outbreak of violence in Egypt.
Impressive earnings reports for blue chip U.S. companies and a rise in U.S. manufacturing data bolstered markets across Asia.
Asian markets rose today with investors piling into oil companies as the price of oil passed the $100 a barrel mark. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched up 0.2%, the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.3%, and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged up 0.4%.
Continuing unrest in Egypt sent shock waves through stock markets as far away as Japan, where the Nikkei 225 Index fell 1.2%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index also dropped 0.7%. In China the Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.4%.
In Asia Friday the Nikkei 225 Index sank 1.1% to 10,360 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid 0.7% to 23,617. In China the Shanghai Composite Index inched up 0.1% to close at 2,753.