Nikkei advances for sixth week; TSMC leads TAIEX

Hong Kong

Shares in Hong Kong rallied on optimism an economic pick up will help boost corporate earnings. Hong Kong's jobless rate had its first decline in nine months, falling to 8.6 percent last month from a record 8.7 percent in July, the government said this week.

HSBC Holdings Plc, which controls two of Hong Kong's biggest banks, rose 3 percent, to HK$103.50 this week. Sun Hung Kai, Hong Kong's biggest property developer by sales, gained 1.3 percent to HK$57.25.

Taiwan

TSMC, which is the world's largest supplier of made to order computer chips, added 1.5 percent to NT$69.00 this week. Company chairman Morris Chang (張忠謀) predicts industry sales of computer chips will climb by 17 percent next year, the Chinese-language newspaper reported earlier this week.