Asian markets start September On Positive Note

Bargain hunting at lower levels lifted the sentiments amid ideas that the risky assets could record some gains after last month's mess

Asian markets ended in green today, as bargain hunting at lower levels lifted the sentiments and ideas that the risky assets could record some gains after steep losses in the previous month spurred some upward bias. Mixed closing on Wall Street in the previous session with the DOW holding above 10k mark and a slide in the Dollar in Asian trades also helped the momentum.



The Japanese stocks ended in positive territory, following steep losses in the previous session, as bargain hunting at lower levels lifted the market. Signs of stability in the yen supported the sentiments as presidential candidate for Democratic Party of Japan said that he would intervene in the currency market to stop the strengthening of the yen against the dollar and the euro. Better than expected economic data from China and the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index rallied 102.96 points, or 1.2%, to 8927, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues rose 6.73 points, or 0.8%, to 811.

The Australian stocks closed with impressive gains after a sharp drop in the last session. Better-than-expected GDP data for the April-June quarter and strength in commodity prices pushed up the markets right from the start. The economy grew by 1.2% in the last quarter, compared to 0.7% growth in the Jan-March quarter. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index surged up 91.50 points, or 2.08%, and closed at 4,496 points, while the All-Ordinaries Index ended at 4,527, representing a gain of 88.00 points, or 1.98%.

On the economic front, a report released by the Australian Industry Group/Price WaterhouseCoopers revealed that activity in the country's manufacturing sector continued to expand in August, but at a slower pace than in July. The AIG /Price WaterhouseCoopers' Performance of Manufacturers index declined 2.7 points to a reading of 51.7, signaling the eighth straight month of expansion in the sector.

Chinese markets closed down though, not being able to participate in the global ascent as investors continued to take profit at higher levels. The Shanghai Composite Index closed at 2,622.9 points, giving up the initial gains recorded after data showed China's manufacturing sector picked up after slowing for several months. This made investors wary at the elevated levels and triggered some profit selling.

In Mumbai, the key indices rallied in the second half of trading session, boosted by gains in index pivotals Reliance Industries, Infosys, and ICICI Bank. The rally was broad-based. Small-cap and mid-cap indices on BSE outperformed the BSE Sensex. All the sectoral indices on BSE were in green and the market breadth was strong. The BSE 30-share Sensex added 234.75 points or 1.31% to 18,205.87. The S&P CNX Nifty rose 69.45 points or 1.29% to 5,471.85.

In other markets, the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong added 0.43%, TSEC in Taiwan rose 0.68% while the Strait Times index in Singapore soared 1.10%.

Dollar tested 1.2800 against the Euro today in the afternoon trades, as rising risk appetite took the greenback off its recent highs. Light sweet crude oil futures for October delivery trade at $72.47, up 55 cents per a barrel in electronic trading.