Asian markets ended mostly higher Wednesday, with airlines staging a big comeback as investors started to look past the swine flu headlines.
Markets in Japan had the day off.
Chinese stocks such as Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. advanced in Hong Kong and Shanghai on the back of strong quarterly earnings, adding to the overall market gains.
But analysts remained concerned about the swine flu outbreak.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 401.84 points, or 2.8%, to close at 14,956.95.
Concerns about rising bad loans hit banking stocks in Sydney and dragged on the broad market.
But Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell on the day, hit by banking shares on concerns about rising bad loans.
Shares of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group slumped 7.4% after announcing that its first-half earnings were hit by escalating charges for bad loans. The bank said the outlook for bad loans remained difficult going into the second half and extending into 2010, forcing it to scrap its previous guidance on provisions. National Australia Bank dropped 3.5% and Bank of Queensland fell 4%.
Analysts were also cautious ahead of comments from the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee after its meeting Wednesday.
South Korean stocks rose after the Bank of Korea said the nation registered a record current-account surplus of $6.65 billion in March. That marked a sharp increase from the $3.56 billion surplus in the previous month.
Miners were mixed in Australia amid falls in base metal prices, with BHP Billiton up 0.6% while Newcrest Mining fell 1.7% and Rio Tinto slipped 0.4%.
Bank and technology stocks were higher in Seoul after their falls on Tuesday, with Shinhan Financial up 5% and Samsung Electronics up 1.9%.
Currency markets were quiet, with Japan closed, though the yen slipped after its recent gains.
The U.S. dollar was at 96.74 yen, from 96.40 yen late in New York. The euro was at 127.53, vs. 126.70 yen, and at $1.3191 versus the U.S. dollar.
CHINA
Shares of China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., or Sinopec, gained 2.9% in Shanghai and 3.6% in Hong Kong after posting an 85% surge in first-quarter profit Tuesday. ICBC extended gains after reporting a 6.2% increase in first-quarter earnings Monday, rising 4.6% in Hong Kong and 2.5% in Shanghai.
Steelmakers added to the gains in Hong Kong and Shanghai, with Angang Steel in Hong Kong gained 6.7% and Baoshan Iron & Steel rising 2.1% in Shanghai.
Airline stocks rebounded after having been among the biggest decliners in the past few days amid concerns that the swine flu outbreak will hurt travel and tourism.
China Southern Airlines soared 10.2% and Cathay Pacific Airways rose 5.6% in Hong Kong, Air China climbed 6.9% in Shanghai, China Airlines up 6.3% in Taipei and Qantas Airways gained 3.2% in Sydney after hefty losses earlier in the week.
Elsewhere:
China’s Shanghai 300 Composite Index gained 86.84 points, or 3.5%, to 2,605.37
Singapore’s Straits Times Index climbed 41.16 points, or 2.3% to 1,849.57
South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index picked up 38.18, or 2.9% at 1,338.42
Taiwan’s Taiex Index gained 17.33 points, or 0.3%, to 5,614.06
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index advanced 13.27 points, or 0.5%, to 2,699.71
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 13.10 points, or 0.4% at 3,695.30
