Asia Market Report

Asia: Nikkei up 0.7%, Hang Seng surges 2.7%

The Nikkei rose 0.7% on Thursday as the weaker yen fuelled demand for key exporters such as Honda, Toyota, Canon and Sony.

Better than expected results from Apple in the US overnight also boosted sentiment. Silicon wafer maker Sumco rallied nearly 7% after JPMorgan Chase & Co increased its rating on the stock. Shares in Kyocera moved ahead.

Financials Mitsubishi Tokyo and Mizuho Financial were also in demand.

In economic news Japan's Ministry of Finance said the country's exports fell in at the slowest rate this year in June, fuelling hopes of economic recovery.

Exports fell 35.7% from a year earlier compared with May's 40.9% decline. Imports fell 41.9% while the trade surplus expanded to 508bn yen, the report said.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed up 69 points at 9,792 in Tokyo.

The Hang Seng rallied 2.7% on Thursday with banks and real estate shares spearheading gains.

Sun Hung Kai Properties surged 5.5% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to “hold” from “sell” citing expectations of an upturn in the luxury residential market.

HSBC rose 1.85% while ICBC added 1.53%. Bank of East Asia gained over 3% in Hong Kong.

The Hang Seng index closed up 512 points at 19,761.

Clothing giant Li & Fung rose 1.5% while Esprit jumped 5% on hopes of economic recovery as traders cheered an unexpected rise in US house prices and mostly upbeat corporate earnings.

Indices

Index	Value	% Change
Nikkei 225	9,792.94	+0.72%
Hang Seng	19,817.70	+2.96%
Straits Times	2,480.89	+1.23%