Hong Kong, Australia Mark All-Time Highs as Region Gains
Asian-Pacific stocks finished sharply higher Tuesday, with indexes in Hong Kong and Australia marking new all-time highs, while Japan's Nikkei 225 Average advanced on Sony gains.
Investors apparently ignored possible concerns over the pivotal midterm congressional elections later Tuesday in the U.S. to focus instead on strong gains on Wall Street.
The Nikkei 225 Index ended 0.2% higher at 16393.41. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.7% to 19068.61, crossing the 19000-point level for the first time. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 set a fresh intraday record before easing slightly to close 0.9% higher to 5491.60. The China Enterprises Index, a gauge of Hong Kong-listed shares in Chinese companies, rose 1.2% to 7804.14, besting its previous all-time high set more than nine years ago.
On Monday, Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking and other leading lenders in Hong Kong slashed their prime benchmark lending rates by 0.25 percentage points. After the interest-rate reduction, HSBC's prime lending rate fell to 7.75% effective Tuesday. (See related article.)
In Hong Kong, trading blue-chip property shares were higher, with Sun Hung Kai Properties up 2.8%, while Henderson Land Development jumped 3%.
China Mobile, the second-biggest blue-chip by market value, rose 0.7% to a record high.
In Sydney, shares of mining giant BHP Billiton rose 2% while smaller rival Rio Tinto advanced 3.4%. Woodside Petroleum added 0.5%, lifted by stronger crude-oil prices.
In Tokyo, entertainment and electronics conglomerate Sony rose 0.9%.
Toyota Motor said its group net profit soared 34%, driven by robust sales in North America and Europe and a weaker yen. Shares rose 1%. (See related article.)
Also in the auto sector, shares of Honda rose 1.7%.
Elsewhere, Taiwan's Weighted Price Index rose 0.9%, rebounding from a 0.6% decline Monday following opposition calls for President Chen Shui-bian to resign amid new corruption allegations.
The Shanghai Composite Index broke from the trend to decline 0.6%.
Indonesia's JSX Composite touched a record peak before easing slightly to trade 1.2% higher at 1661.15. South Korea's Kospi index rose 0.6%, while Singapore's Straits Times Index added 1.2%.
香港、澳大利亚股市创历史新高
2006年11月07日20:35大 | 中 | 小
亚太股市周二收盘大幅走高，香港和澳大利亚股市均创下历史高点，东京股市日经指数走高。
日经225指数收盘微幅上扬，受丰田汽车(Toyota Motor)等出口商的强劲收益预期提振，但收盘时回吐了之前的大部分涨幅，因投资者在美国中期选举前持谨慎态度；交易员预计东京股市近期表现仍将疲软。日经225指数上涨28.65点，至16393.41点，涨幅0.2%。
香港股市收盘微幅走高，回吐了早盘时取得的大部分涨幅，分析师表示，市场目前笼罩在回调阴云之下。但受香港银行意外降息提振，地产类股大幅上扬。蓝筹恒生指数收盘仅涨2.76点，至18939.31点，为连续第五个交易日收于历史新高，涨幅0.01%。但该指数盘中一度触及19161.38点的高点，本交易日大部分时间都在重要心理关口19,000点上方运行。
中国股市收盘涨跌互见，钢铁制造商类股继最近大幅上涨后小幅回调，限制了上证综合指数的涨势，该指数目前距1900点的心理关口仅有数步之遥。基准上证综合指数上涨0.2%，收于1889.53点，该指数前市一度触及1897.41点，为自2001年8月24日创下1912.19点以来的最高收盘水平。深证综合指数跌0.2%，至452.52点。
新加坡股市普遍上涨，收盘创纪录水平，受华尔街股市前夜表现强劲提振。新加坡股市基准指数周三可能再创历史新高。海峡时报指数收盘涨0.7%，至2749.22点，之前的历史高位是在10月26日创出的2741.69点。
澳大利亚股市再创新高，受大盘全线上扬推动。基准指数现已较6月低点高出15%以上，而交易商们预计年底前还将迎来进一步的上涨。基准S&P/ASX 200指数收盘涨0.9%，至5491.6点，盘中曾创出5496.3点的纪录新高。墨尔本杯(Melbourne Cup)赛马会及维多利亚州假日抑制了市场的成交量。
