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- Vietnam death row tycoon awaits verdict in new trial
- 'Our time has come': the female Indian director hoping to make Oscars history
- Bondi beach 'closed' as Sydney shores hit by 'tar balls'
- Dodgers smash Mets to seize lead in MLB playoff series
- China to almost double support for unfinished housing projects
- King Charles heads to Australia, a nation shrugs
- China to boost credit for property market, renovate 1 mn homes
- New York fight back to take 2-1 lead over Lynx in WNBA Finals
- Family feud reignites over Singapore ex-PM's historic home
- ECB set to cut rates again as inflation cools
- Malinin, Sakamoto headline pre-Winter Olympics figure skating season
- Prospective Paris FC takeover could transform French football landscape
- Asian markets rally, with eyes on China housing briefing
- China's underground lab seeks answer to deep scientific riddle
- China toughens Taiwan stance over president's sovereignty defence
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- How Indigenous guards saved a Colombian lake from overtourism
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- Garcia Luna: Mexico's 'supercop' turned cartel abettor
- North Korea says constitution now defines South as 'hostile' state
- Vietnam death row tycoon faces verdict in new trial
- Menendez brothers' family call for release as US prosecutors review evidence
- Fiery Harris vows break from Biden in testy Fox interview
- Fiery Harris claims break from Biden in testy Fox interview
- Raytheon to pay $950 mn over fraud, bribery schemes: US
- Fiery Harris uses testy Fox interview to claim break from Biden
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- Mexico's ex-security chief sentenced to over 38 years in US prison
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- Climate change worsened deadly Nepal floods, scientists say
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- US says India has removed alleged agent in assassination plot
- Barca hit nine in Women's Champions League, Bayern overcome Juve
- Harris courts Trump-skeptic Republicans with Fox interview
- Global stock markets diverge as investors focus on earnings
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- Lavreysen wins record-equalling 14th world cycling track title
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- Lower rates, surging stock market fail to ignite US IPO market
- Pogba 'willing to give up money' to stay at Juve
- Few countries have drawn up nature protection plans: UN
- Biden to make farewell trip to Germany as Ukraine war rages
- EU announces 30 mn euros to stem Senegal irregular migration
- Italy extends surrogacy ban to couples seeking it abroad
- Panama Canal crossings down 29 percent due to drought
- 'Clear indications' India violated Canada's sovereignty: Trudeau
- World champion Springboks to host Italy in 2025, Moerat to miss November tour
- Trump claims to be 'father of IVF' at all-female campaign stop
Asian markets rally, with eyes on China housing briefing
Asian markets rose Thursday as Chinese investors waded back ahead of a briefing in Beijing by the country's housing minister that fanned hopes for more measures to support the ailing property sector.
The gains followed a positive day on Wall Street, where traders took heart from healthy earnings from Morgan Stanley and United Airlines that helped claw back some of Tuesday's losses sparked by worries over this year's tech rally.
Oil prices also inched back up but remained under pressure owing to questions about the demand outlook.
Hong Kong and Shanghai led gains across the region as Chinese housing minister Ni Hong prepared for a news conference officials said will outline plans to support the real estate market and boost troubled developers.
The world's number two economy has struggled to recover since lifting strict Covid controls at the end of 2022, battered by a debt crisis in the property sector and torpid consumer demand.
Authorities announced a series of piecemeal measures in that time to little effect, but last month's raft of pledges -- unveiled over several days -- sparked blockbuster rallies in the mainland and Hong Kong on hopes the government was finally getting to grips with the problems.
However, news conferences last Tuesday and Saturday took the wind out of the sails and led to a fresh bout of volatility in trading floors.
"While investors greatly welcomed this turn of events, one wonders whether the latest stimulus package is sufficient to drive a sustained recovery for the lethargic giant, with previous efforts contributing little to revive the economy," analysts at Morningstar said in a report.
With hopes high, Hong Kong rose almost two percent at one point in early trade, while Shanghai also posted healthy gains.
Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei and Manila also rose, though Tokyo extended Wednesday's losses.
The gains followed another strong lead from New York, where small-cap stocks rose as investors shifted out of big-name firms such as Amazon, Apple and Microsoft, which have soared this year on the back of demand for all things linked to artificial intelligence.
US investors also welcomed strong earnings from Morgan Stanley and United Airlines that helped offset a decision by Dutch tech giant ASML to cut its 2025 guidance and forecast a slump in sales bookings, which sparked worries over the outlook for the sector.
- Key figures around 0200 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.5 percent at 38,998.26
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.8 percent at 20,658.36
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.7 percent at 3,225.57
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0863 from $1.0859 on Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2996 from $1.2986
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 149.35 yen from 149.63 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.58 pence from 83.62 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.8 percent at $70.96 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.8 at $74.78 per barrel
New York - Dow: UP 0.8 percent at 43,077.70 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.0 percent at 8,329.07 (close)
M.Fischer--AMWN