Shares rose in Asia on Friday after an advance on Wall Street led by the latest rally in technology companies.
Chinese benchmarks rose on reports that the Chinese government is planning new measures to support the ailing property sector, which has dragged on growth over the past several years.
The relaxation of some of the country’s “zero COVID-19” rules is also boosting hopes that the economy will gain momentum, although experts say it will likely take months for tourism and other sectors to recover from the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo: AFP
“Asian stocks are a bit higher, but full-out exuberance has been tempered by rising COVID cases and skepticism of the force of reopening economic tailwind that the current level of Asian risk assets implies,” SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said.
While outside experts had increasingly criticized China’s containment policy, which sought to isolate every case, as unsustainable, they have also said that the country would now face a challenging first wave of infections, as the loosened measures would fuel an increase of cases.
In Taiwan, the TAIEX closed up 152.39 points, or 1.05 percent, at 14,705.43 after moving between 14,620.27 and 14,742.79. Turnover totaled NT$193.02 billion (US$6.3 billion). The index lost 1.77 percent from a week earlier.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index on Friday rose 1.5 percent to 19,726.07. Over the past week, it gained 6.56 percent.
The Shanghai Composite on Friday index climbed 0.2 percent to 3,203.57, up 1.61 percent from a week earlier.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index on Friday gained 1.3 percent to 27,924.81, up 0.44 percent from a week earlier, while the KOSPI in South Korea rose 0.4 percent to 2,380.87, but lost 1.86 percent on the week.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.5 percent to 7,211.60, but was down 1.21 percent from a week earlier.
Friday’s gains followed the S&P 500 rising 0.8 percent to 3,963.51, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ closed 1.1 percent higher.
Additional reporting by staff writer, with CNA
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