Card companies also rose after Standard Chartered Plc said Thursday it wants to buy a card company in Korea.
Kookmin Credit Card Co, 74 percent owned by Kookmin Bank, rose 27 percent on the Kosdaq Stock Market. The lender said it will merge its card issuing business with Kookmin Credit to cut costs. Kookmin Bank climbed 13 percent, its biggest weekly gain since the five days ended Oct. 18, and was the second-biggest contributor to the Kospi's advance.
The Kospi rose 5.7 percent last month, its second monthly advance.
The Hang Seng rallied 8.8 percent last month, the biggest such advance since November 2001, as the number of severe acute respiratory syndrome cases dropped. Hong Kong has the second- highest tally of SARS cases.
Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. rose 3.7 percent last week on optimism demand for travel will rebound.
Developers such as Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd. and Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd also gained on expectations the outbreak is now under control and the US will lead a global economic recovery now that the Iraq war is over, aiding domestic growth.
Sun Hung Kai, the city's biggest developer by sales, advanced 2.6 percent. Cheung Kong, the biggest by market capitalization, added 1.3 percent.
"I am optimistic," said Paul Pong, managing director at Pegasus Fund Managers Ltd, which invests the equivalent of US$64 million.
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