Asian Stocks Up on U.S. Economic Health Signs

Asian stock markets rose Friday in thin holiday trading on signs the U.S. economy is improving.
China's benchmark in Shanghai gained 0.9 percent to 2,206.23 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.1 percent to 18,577.91. Japan's financial markets are closed for a public holiday.
Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.2 percent to 4,140.40, Seoul's Kospi was up 1.3 percent to 1,871.72 and Singapore added 0.3 percent to 2,673.75.(See more on Bank of America's recent settlement.)
Investors have been cheered in recent weeks by evidence of a rebound in the U.S. — the world's biggest economy and a crucial export market for many countries in Asia.
The number of people applying for unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level since April 2008, the third week in a row that applications fell. The Conference Board reported that its measure of future economic activity jumped last month, the second straight gain.
Investors were also encouraged by an agreement in the U.S. Congress to extend a payroll tax cut for two months.
Trading volume is normally low during the next week as many investors take vacations over Christmas and New Year. Global markets are closed Monday for Christmas.
Credit ratings agency Fitch said it expects growth in Asia's developing economies will slow slightly next year but still expand by a robust 6.8 percent, which should help bolster the region's wealthier nations.
"Emerging Asia's resilience provides some support for high-income Asian countries relative to other advanced economies," Fitch said in a report.(See more on the Euro crisis.)
Other analysts are more pessimistic. HSBC is forecasting Europe's economy will contract next year by 1 percent while the U.S. grows a weak 1.5 percent as Europe's debt crisis undercuts business confidence.
"Despite signs of greater urgency to deal with the problem, investors remain mostly unconvinced," HSBC said in a report. "This loss of faith is reminiscent of the collapse in confidence in 2008, when the wheels came off the global economy."
"Back then, forecasters completely failed to grasp the gravity of the situation," HSBC said. "The same may be true today."
On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5 percent while the broader S&P 500 index gained 0.8 percent.
Benchmark crude for February delivery was up 7 cents to $99.60 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 86 cents to finish at $99.53 on Thursday.
In London, Brent crude was down 2 cents at $107.87 on the ICE futures exchange.
The euro was steady at $1.3076. The dollar was little changed at 78.08 yen.