Asia Shares End Up; Nikkei Rises 9th Straight Session

Most Asian markets romped ahead Monday on buoyant investor sentiment amid hopes for a speedy economic recovery.

Japanese shares rose for a ninth straight session, marking their longest winning streak in more than 20 years, while Shanghai's benchmark index reached its best closing level in nearly 14 months.

The Nikkei 225 Average jumped 1.5% to 10088.66 in Tokyo, ending above the 10000-point level for the first time since mid-June. China's Shanghai Composite advanced into a fourth session to end up 1.9% at 3435.21, a closing level it hasn't seen since early June 2008.

"I don't really see guys steaming into the market right now. We're approaching bubble territory, but I don't feel like we're there yet," said Ben Collett, head of cash equities at TFS Derivatives in Hong Kong.

"The moves here have been massive. Arguably, they've been excessive relative to Europe or U.S., but if you want to look at growth, fundamentals across Asia are better."

Toll-road operator Sichuan Expressway rocketed on its debut in Shanghai, more than tripling from its initial public offering price of 3.60 yuan (53 U.S. cents) to end at CNY10.90 on a buying frenzy. The stock surged as high as CNY15.25 during the session and trading had to be suspended twice due to their "unusual" performance.

"Sichuan Expressway's debut is adding steam to the market's frenzy," said Jacky Zhang at CSC International.

The performance lifted Sichuan's Hong Kong-listed shares 5.6%. The benchmark Hang Seng Index, meanwhile, rose 1.4% to end at 20251.62 - its first finish above the psychologically-crucial 20000-point level since September.

Elsewhere, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index ended 1.2% higher, South Korea's Kospi gained 1.4%, New Zealand's NZX-50 added 1.2%, Taiwan's Taiex rose 0.8% and Singapore's Straits Times closed up 1.7%. India's Sensex ended flat with market heavyweight Reliance Industries falling 3.7% after its weaker-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results on Friday.

"The positive undercurrent is still very strong," said Gabriel Gan, AmFraser senior vice president of equity sales.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 20 points in screen trade recently, after a mixed performance on Wall Street on Friday.

Investors were looking forward to coming events, including high-level talks between China and the U.S., and advance U.S. second quarter gross domestic product data.

"People say the rally is going to fade, but that's rubbish. There's obviously cash coming in from the sidelines and I'm seeing very little resistance," said Southern Cross Equities Director Charlie Aitken.

Nomura Holdings rose 3.1% in Tokyo and Daiwa Securities added 4.5%, after the Nikkei newspaper reported Japan's three biggest brokerages - Nomura, Daiwa and Nikko Cordial - were likely to have turned a profit in the fiscal first quarter ended June.

Hitachi rose 3.4% with strong trading volumes. A spokesman said the Japanese electronics maker was reviewing its capital relationship with its units in general, but declined to comment on a Nikkei report that Hitachi planned to turn five listed group firms into wholly-owned units.

Clarion, which is 63.7% owned by Hitachi, jumped 13.6%, accompanied by heavy trading volumes.

But Japanese shipping companies lost ground after cutting full-year forecasts, with Nippon Yusen down 4.6%, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines down 3.5% and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha off 4%.

China Everbright surged 11.3% in Hong Kong, supported by news China Everbright Securities had final permission for its yuan-denominated Class A share raising from Chinese regulators.

Aluminum Corp. of China, or Chalco, shook off early weakness to advance 8.1% in Shanghai and 4.5% in Hong Kong, despite warning it could swing to a net loss in the first half on insufficient demand and low aluminum prices. Analysts said the news wasn't unexpected.

Leighton Holdings pushed up 2.2%, after announcing A$900 million in new contracts, including building a hotel with a joint venture partner in Abu Dhabi.

Retail stocks gained in Seoul, with Lotte Shopping up 5.8% and Hyundai Department Store adding 3.1%. South Korea's Consumer Sentiment Index rose for a fourth-straight month in July to its highest level in seven years, inching up to 109 from 106 in June, the results of a Bank of Korea poll showed.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar was at Y94.98, from Y94.69 in New York on Friday. The euro bought Y135.34, from Y134.53 in New York, and $1.4241, from $1.4212.

ANZ Senior Dealer Alex Sinton said the U.S. dollar faced several tests in the coming week. "There's probably going to be a few nerves ahead of the U.S. GDP release."

Nymex crude-oil futures rose 66 cents on Globex to $68.71 a barrel, reversing an early decline to $67.68.

Spot gold was up $2.80 from New York, at $954.40 a troy ounce. "Gold remains in a state of flux. It is taking most of its cues from the U.S. dollar, with the [inverse] correlation surging to about 80% last month," said analysts at MKS Finance.