Hong Kong Stocks Extend Rally To Fifth Day

Hong Kong stocks clocked up five straight days of gains on Friday as investors tracked another positive lead from Wall Street after a soft inflation reading soothed concerns about rising US interest rates.

The Hang Seng Index rose over 1 percent, to close at 31,122.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.4 percent, to 3,163 and the Shenzhen Composite Index fell 1 percent, to 1,825.

While geopolitical tensions continue to linger after Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear pact this week, most Asian markets were buoyed by the prospect of cheaper borrowing after data showed US consumer prices edged up only slightly in April.

Tokyo stocks jumped on Wall Street gains. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 1.2 percent, to close at 22,758.

Singapore climbed 0.8 percent and Seoul added 0.6 percent, while Wellington, Jakarta and Taipei also posted healthy gains.

Manila was 2.3 percent higher a day after data showed the economy expanded at a strong pace in the first three months of the year, and despite a central bank interest rate hike.

However, Sydney finished marginally lower.

Still, lower expectations for US rates hurt the dollar on Thursday and it struggled to recover in Asia with high-yielding currencies such as the Australian dollar, Mexican peso, Indonesian rupiah and South Korean won gaining ground.

Even the pound held its own despite the Bank of England slashing its economic growth and inflation outlook. (AFP)