Asian stocks advanced this week, with Japan's benchmarks climbing for the first week in five, after the US began an attack on Iraq.
Shares of the region's largest companies, such as Honda Motor Co and Samsung Electronics Co, led gains.
"There was a certain relief rally; at least we know what's going to happen," said Alex Muromcew, who helps manage US$600 million in stocks globally for Loomis Sayles & Co in San Francisco. "Markets hate uncertainty whether it's a war or an election."
Loomis holds shares of Canon Inc. and Rohm Co.
South Korea's KOSPI index surged 7.1 percent, its first weekly gain in four, while benchmarks in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia and Singapore climbed for a second straight week.
"There is still a concern that the war could be prolonged, but a war creates demand and that's a good thing for the stock market," said Hiromichi Tsuyukubo, who helps manage US$650 million in assets at Tokyo-Mitsubishi Asset Management Ltd. "This is a time to be buying."
Honda, Japan's second-largest automaker, which gets about 90 percent of its operating profit from the US, added 6.2 percent to ?4,280 this week. Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest maker of computer memory chips and the third-largest mobile-phone maker, climbed 6.2 percent to 315,000 won.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manu-facturing Co (TSMC,
DBS Group Holdings Ltd, Singapore's biggest bank by assets, jumped 6.1 percent to S$9.60.
China Mobile (HK) Ltd, the world's biggest mobile-phone company by users, surged 7.1 percent to HK$17.35 this week.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 2.4 percent to 8,195.05 in a shortened week, while the TOPIX index climbed 2.7 percent to 807.48. Honda and other transport stocks contributed the most to the TOPIX's gain this week.
Japan's markets were closed yesterday for a national holiday.
South Korea's KOSPI jumped 7.1 percent to 575.77, its biggest weekly gain since the five days ended Oct. 18. The TAIEX in Taiwan added 2.5 percent to 4,586.92, rising for two out of five sessions in the week.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index added 4.1 percent to 2866.70, while in Singapore, the Straits Times Index rallied 5.3 percent to 1317.65.
Stock markets in Asia had slumped this year partly on concern a war in Iraq would disrupt consumer and business spending and slow global economic growth. The KOSPI fell as much as 18 percent before the US assault started. The S&P/ASX 200 and the Straits Times index each slumped as much as a 10th.
Benchmarks flip-flopped in intra-day trading in several markets yesterday as investors reacted to the latest news from Iraq to gauge when the attack will end.
"War is the only thing on people's minds nowadays," said Kim Young Il, who manages the equivalent of US$792 million at KB Investment Trust Management Co in Seoul.
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