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Asia bounces up on SARS hopes
HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Asia stock markets bounced on Tuesday, driven up by a solid rally on Wall St. and new hopes the region had seen the worst of the SARS virus outbreak. South Korea, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan all posted significant gains. New Zealand played the only sour note, sagging a blip over 1 percent. The regions airlines had a mixed day, after the World Health Organization said the outbreak of SARS had peaked in all places except China. Asia's dominant market, Tokyo, was closed Tuesday due to national Greenery Day and will resume trading on Wednesday. The Nikkei took a hit on Monday, dropping 1.2 percent on a shock earning report from Sony Corp. South Korean shares led the gains on Tuesday with the benchmark Kospi up 4.98 percent -- the biggest percentage gain in three weeks. The index closed at 597.36, buoyed by an easing of concerns over North Korea's nuclear ambitions. The gains were broad with Samsung Electronics ending 5.4 percent higher to 30,500 won. Top mobile carrier SK Telecom rose 8.6 percent to 171,000 won. South Korea's flagship carrier, Korean Air posted a 7.2 percent rise on hopes for an increase of air flights in the region after SARS fears moderated. South Korea on Tuesday reported its first probable case of SARS. Qantas, SIA, Cathay riseIn Taiwan, the main Taiex rebounded from a six-month low to close 1.47 percent higher. China Motor, the island's top car producer, jumped 3.64 percent to T$57.00, boosted by good first-quarter earning. Of the techs, the worlds largest contract chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co gained 2.50 percent. Australian stocks closed at a three-month high, with Qantas Airways leading the charge. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index closed up 36.7 points, or 1.2 percent, to 3,011.2. Qantas flew 6.7 percent to a A$3.04 close after shares in the airline hit their lowest level on Monday since the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. Media giant News Corp climbed 3.2 percent to A$11.43 and building products group James Hardie added 3.9 percent to A$6.46. Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand stocks sagged 1.04 percent to 1,973.63. Air New Zealand hit a year-low of NZ$0.36 during the day before closing a cent higher. In Hong Kong, a rally led the Hang Seng index to close at a three-week high at 8,744.22, up 3.67 percent – Hong Kong's biggest gain in six months. Cathay Pacific Airways was among the major gainers, enjoying a rise of 6.9 percent to HK$9.30 after shares in the airline had taken a hammering in recent weeks. Over the border in China, Beijing announced its stock exchanges would close from May 1 to May 9 in a bid to help curb the spread of SARS. Trading will resume on May 12. (China close) China reported nine more deaths from SARS and another 202 infections on Tuesday, taking the death toll to 148 and the total number of cases to more than 3,300. In Singapore, the Straits Times index climbed 3.51 percent to 1284.61. Big bank DBS Group Holdings closed at S$9.00, up 5.9 percent. Singapore Airlines, which fell to an 18-month low last week posted a 5.1 percent rise on Tuesday to S$9.30
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