SALON

Friday, Dec 7, 2012 5:15 AM UTC

Asia stocks rise as US employment claims dip

By

Topics: From the Wires,

Asia stocks rise as US employment claims dipA man walks by an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012. Asian stock markets remained in a holding pattern Thursday as investors assessed President Barack Obama's comments that reaching a budget deal to prevent the U.S. from a possible recession was "not that tough" and could even be done quickly. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)(Credit: AP)

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stock markets rose Friday after the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week, offsetting a somber economic forecast by the European Central Bank for a bleak year ahead in the region.

The U.S. Labor Department said Thursday that applications dropped 25,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 370,000, a level consistent with modest hiring. The number of people continuing to receive unemployment aid also fell.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was marginally higher at 9,546.65. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.5 percent to 1,958.41. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9 percent to 4,548.90. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.3 percent to 22,308.07.

Mainland Chinese shares posted substantial gains after recent sharp sell-offs. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.2 percent to 2,053.86. The smaller Shenzhen Composite Index jumped 1.5 percent to 781.48.

Chris Weston of IG Markets in Melbourne said the upcoming release on Sunday of inflation, retail sales and factory output data from China is expected to point to a modestly improving economy. That helped boost mainland stocks.

“China is seeing modest buying, which could be a sign that investors there are hoping to see further signs of a recovery in this Sunday’s data dump,” said Weston.

Traders were also looking forward to next week’s meeting of Federal Reserve policymakers. Weston said he expected Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke to announce new measures to replace Operation Twist, a program under which the Fed sells $45 billion a month in short-term Treasurys and then buys an equal amount of long-term securities. The program expires in December.

“If it doesn’t get announced, then there are real risks that we’ll see a sizeable sell-off in risk assets,” he said.

On Thursday, the European Central Bank said that the economies of 17 countries that use the euro will contract next year. The central bank stopped short of offering new measures to boost growth and left its key interest rate unchanged at a record low.

The combined economy of the euro countries is in a recession after a massive debt crisis followed by government spending cuts and tax hikes that have hurt growth.

“Although the ECB left policy rates unchanged the post ECB meeting press conference effectively opened the door to a rate cut in Q1 next year following sharp downward revisions to growth projections and well below target inflation projected over the medium term,” said analysts at Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong.

Among individual stocks, Japan’s Sharp Corp. shot up 11.6 percent a day after news reports said the struggling electronics firm will start selling U.S. solar power company SunPower Corp.’s household solar panels to strengthen its own solar panel business.

Japan’s Nishimatsu Construction Co. jumped 7.8 percent and South Korea’s SK Hynix, the world’s No. 2 memory chip maker, rose 3.8 percent.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was up 27 cents to $86.54 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.62, or 1.8 percent, to finish at $86.26 per barrel in New York on Thursday.

In currencies, the euro rose to $1.2968 from $1.2963 late Thursday in New York. The dollar rose to 82.45 yen from 82.36 yen.

___

Follow Pamela Sampson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/pamelasampson

By Pamela Sampson

More By Pamela Sampson.

Next Article

You Might Also Like

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • The protests take on a festive element as police forces move out of the park and square. Wearing a gas mask, this young man dances to traditional Turkish music in front of Taksim Square’s Ataturk Monument.

  • In Gezi Park since March 31st, this protester, originally caught off-guard by the Government’s teargas and water cannons, went out and bought a Russian army mask from WWII, preparing for what was to come.

  • This rambunctious boy seems to be enjoying the chaos. After taking this picture he threw a stone at the already destroyed building in the background.

  • Forming a line, the police face off directly with protesters in Taksim Square. After a while, they retreated and there was a general cheer – a back-and-forth dance that has been common since the beginning of this protest.

  • An elderly woman in Gezi Park reads the news. The tent community occupying the park was violently destroyed on June 16th.

  • Many different groups had set up booths to promote their cause in Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Standing in front of one, this man waves his flag while posing with conviction.

  • Many home-remedies are used to minimize the effects of tear gas. This woman has put a milky solution on her face, removing her mask after the tear gas dissipated. Before sunrise, the police came again for another round of teargasing.

  • People capitalize on the uprising -- selling flags, beer, gas masks, sky lanterns and spray paint to name just a few of the popular items.

  • On Monday morning, June 11, the police execute a strong offensive. Many plain-clothed police officers, like the ones seen here, clash with protesters in the side streets away from the main stand-off in Taksim.

  • The authorities seem to be most aggressive in the night, pushing protesters away from the square and park. After being teargassed this young woman catches her breath with other protesters on Siraselviler Street.

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

More Related Stories

Comments

 0 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username ( settings | log out )

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: "We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves": Growing up primate

Recommendations