Asian markets ended mostly higher on Thursday, tracked by Wall Street’s huge rally yesterday. After suffering a severe setback on Christmas Eve, US stocks climbed higher overnight with traders indulging in hectic bargain hunting. Easing worries about the tenure of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and a strong rebound in crude oil prices aided sentiment. The Japanese market rose sharply, extending gains to a second successive session. However, the Hong Kong and Chinese shares ended lower after weak Chinese industrial data highlighted the difficulties the world's second largest economy is facing. Data showed industrial profits declined 1.8 percent in November from a year earlier, the first negative reading since December 2015 and a steep fall from 3.6 percent growth in October.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 2,483.09 | -15.20 | -0.61 |
Hang Seng | 25,478.88 | -172.50 | -0.67 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,190.64 | 62.79 | 1.02 |
KLSE Composite | 1,690.72 | 18.12 | 1.08 |
Nikkei 225 | 20,077.62 | 750.56 | 3.88 |
Straits Times | 3,044.74 | 33.59 | 1.12 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,028.44 | 0.43 | 0.02 |
Taiwan Weighted | 9,641.56 | 162.57 | 1.72 |
