HONG KONG, CHINA - Upbeat sentiment going into the third-quarter earnings season gave Asian markets a boost on Wednesday as resources chips were lifted by rising commodities prices.

Hong Kong added 1.95 percent, Sydney rose 0.95 percent and Seoul 1.24 percent, while Taipei was 1.31 percent up.

Dealers' hopes were lifted after Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker, reported better-than-expected profits of 1.9 billion US dollars for the third quarter.

Shanghai rose 1.17 percent, helped by customs data showing the rate of decline in China's exports was at its slowest in nine months.

Crude rose further to around 74 US dollars a barrel as the dollar continued to struggle against other currencies, while gold surged above 1,070 dollars an ounce for the first time.

The greenback's weakness also weighed on exporters. Fears over a stronger yen as well as profit-taking led Tokyo to buck the regional trend by falling 0.16 percent.

TOKYO: Down 0.16 percent. The Nikkei-225 index fell 16.35 points to 10,060.21.

A fall on Wall Street kept the mood cautious, despite Intel's better-than-expected earnings.

Bank stocks were hit by reports that Japan Airlines will seek debt waivers from its creditors of 250 billion yen (2.8 billion US dollars) or more.

"It's unlikely that the banks will easily accept such a plan," said Tokai Tokyo Research Center analyst Tatsuo Majima, adding that worries over the negotiations may weigh on bank stocks in the short term.

Mizuho Financial slumped 4.8 percent to 177 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial lost 4.7 percent to 3,270 yen.
Mazda Motor slid 6.4 percent to 220 yen.

HONG KONG: Up 1.95 percent. The Hang Seng Index rose 419.12 points to 21,886.48.

"Commodity shares are likely to remain strong with weakness in the US dollar a key factor supporting gains in commodity prices," Louis Tse, an investment strategist at Value Convergence CEF, told Dow Jones Newswires.

PetroChina surged 5.2 percent to 9.96 and Sinopec rose 3.1 percent to 7.03. Gold companies were higher, with Zijin Mining up 2.2 percent to 8.38, while Zhaojin Mining ended 2.2 percent higher at 14.62.

Alumina and aluminium producer Chalco ended up 2.4 percent at 9.14 and Shenhua Energy rose 1.7 percent to 35.00.

SYDNEY: Up 0.95 percent. The S&P/ASX200 added 45.4 points to 4,831.1.

The market is at its highest level in more than 12 months and was supported by data showing a 1.7 percent jump in consumer sentiment in September as well as record iron ore output forecasts from mining giant Rio Tinto, analysts said.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia rose 2.46 percent to 54.97 US dollars, Westpac gained 1.86 percent to 26.80 US dollars and ANZ added 0.65 percent to 24.80 US dollars.

Rio added 1.70 percent to close at 63.25 dollars and BHP Billiton rose 0.42 percent to 38.40 US dollars.

SHANGHAI: Up 1.17 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, rose 34.34 points to 2,970.53.

The slower fall in exports indicated foreign demand for Chinese goods was improving.

"The improvement of the US consumer sector in recent months certainly is having a positive effect on (China's) exports," said Chen Huiqin, an analyst at Huatai Securities.

Real estate-related companies were higher, partly on earnings hopes. Developer Gemdale rose 5.8 percent to 14.67 yuan.

Expectations the yuan would continue to appreciate, thereby strengthening foreign demand for domestic assets, also boosted the sector.

Oil companies rose for the second consecutive day on crude's gains. China Petroleum and Chemical ended up 2.0 percent at 11.98 yuan, and PetroChina rose 1.5 percent to 13.31.

SEOUL: Up 1.24 percent. The KOSPI gained 20.16 points at 1,649.09.

Intel's earnings and outlook helped renew expectations for South Korea's third-quarter reporting season.

But the market did not make huge gains due to concerns that local firms may have peaked in the past three months, analysts said.

Gains were led by technology stocks and steelmakers, with Samsung Electronics up 1.6 percent to 769,000 won.

POSCO rose 4.3 percent to 515,000 won and Shinhan Financial Group fell 0.2 percent to 46,350 won.

TAIPEI: Up 1.31 percent. The weighted index rose 99.15 points to 7,695.75.

The market was led by electronic big caps after Intel's report.

"The better-than-expected earnings report by Intel did help lift investor confidence especially as some were reluctant to further increase their portfolio after the share prices rose to relatively high levels," said Steven
Huang of President Securities.

Siliconware Precision soared 6.87 percent to 47.65 as the heavily weighted electronic sector gained 1.53 percent.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co was up 2.75 percent.

SINGAPORE: Up 1.50 percent. The Straits Times Index advanced 40.08 points to 2,708.48.

Data released this week reinforcing Singapore's emergence from a severe recession boosted investor sentiment, although many are still waiting for third quarter corporate earnings results before taking firm positions.

DBS rose 20 cents to 13.18 dollars and United Overseas Bank was up 38 cents to 16.98.

CapitaLand climbed 18 cents to 4.11, Singapore Telecom closed one cent higher at 3.14, while Singapore Airlines surged 12 cents to 14.28.

BANGKOK: Down 2.04 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand plunged 15.20 points to close at 731.47.

Among blue-chips, coal producer Banpu plunged 10.00 baht to close at 446.00, PTT Plc lost 6.00 baht to 267.00 and PTT Exploration and Production edged down 0.50 baht to 155.00.

Bangkok Bank fell 3.00 baht to close at 128.00 baht, Kasikornbank closed 2.50 baht lower at 86.50 and Siam Commercial Bank was down 2.75 baht at 87.00.

Siam Cement lost 2.00 baht to 223.00 and Thai Airways International shed 1.00 baht to 22.30.

KUALA LUMPUR: Up 1.08 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 13.33 points to 1,246.84.

"Some funds are positioning themselves ahead of the unveiling of the 2010 Budget (on October 23)," a dealer said, adding that the main hopes were for further liberalisation in the banking sector and more infrastructure projects
to drive growth.

Top bank Maybank rose 3.3 percent to 6.96 ringgit. Supermax, a medical gloves producer, rose 3.8 percent to 3.32 ringgit.

JAKARTA: Up 1.61 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index gained 39.73 points to 2,511.72.

Coal miner Bumi Resources rose 5.4 percent to 2,950 rupiah, Bukit Asam added 2.5 percent to 14,400 while cement maker Semen Gresik rose 3.8 percent to 6,800.

MANILA: Flat. The index edged up 0.61 points, or 0.02 percent, to 2,930.70.

"What has been keeping the market in consolidation is the lack of catalysts that can move it up or down," Ron Rodrigo of DBP Daiwa Securities said.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone ended 0.77 percent down at 2,590 pesos and First Philippine Holdings surged 7.59 percent to 42.50.

WELLINGTON: Up 0.53 percent. The NZX-50 closed 17.02 points higher at 3,186.48.

Fletcher Building fell eight cents to 7.92 dollars and Telecom rose five cents to 2.62.

Telecom said it was disappointed by a High Court ruling that said from 2001 to 2004 it leveraged its dominant position to charge downstream competitors disproportionately high prices for wholesale access to its network.

Auckland International Airport rose four cents to 2.03 US dollars and Air New Zealand eased a cent to 1.33.

MUMBAI: Up 1.2 percent. The 30-share Sensex index rose 204.44 points to a 17-month high of 17,231.11. --AFP