The rebound came as crude-oil prices retreated after the International Energy Agency assured it was prepared to release its emergency oil stockpiles to cover any shortfalls resulting from the turmoil. Saudi Arabia also said the Kingdom definitely can and is willing to supply more oil to the market. April Nymex crude-oil futures rose to a two and a half year high of $103.41 per barrel on Thursday, and were recently up 52 cents at $97.80 a barrel on Globex.
Airlines, hard-hit by the recent oil-price surge, were mostly higher around the region. Seoul listed Korean Air Lines Co. added 4.8%, Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways tacked on 3.6%, Australia's Qantas Airways rose 2.2% and Jet Airways India rose 3.5%. Malaysian-based budget carrier AirAsia jumped 6.0% in Kuala Lumpur after reporting fourth quarter net profit jumped more than nine times on-year thanks to higher passenger numbers and stronger yields.
Exporters in Tokyo were up as the dollar traded relatively firmly near the Y82 level. Nissan Motor Co. rose 0.7% and Sony Corp. added 1.2% in Tokyo. Toyota Motor Co. advanced 2.2% despite another U.S. recall. Elpida Memory Inc. soared 6.4% after its president signaled a price hike for semiconductor memory chips next month. China shares erased earlier losses to end little changed, paced by financial shares.
Banks rose on expectations of robust full-year earnings growth after a mid-sized lender announced a solid earnings report for 2010. Shenzhen Development Bank ended 2.1% higher after it said Friday its net profit for the last fiscal year ended Dec. 31 rose 25% from a year earlier on steady lending growth, although the result was in line with expectations. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China climbed 0.7%, while China Construction Bank gained.
In Hong Kong, AIA Group climbed 5.7% after reporting an above expectation 54% on year rise in full-year net profit, helped by a growth in new business. In Sydney, Origin Energy tacked on 5.8% after the company said its $35 billion gas export joint venture with ConocoPhillips agreed to sign China Petrochemical Corp. as a customer. Woolworths advanced 1.3% after saying it's surprised by the strength of its performance at the start of its second half. Woolworths met expectations with a 6.0% rise in first-half profit to A$1.16 billion, driven by higher food and liquor sales. For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today
No comments:
Post a Comment