(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has climbed higher in three straight sessions, advancing more than 480 points or 2 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just beneath the 25,250-point plateau and it's expected to open higher again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside, with support from technology and oil stocks. The European markets were slightly higher and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Thursday following gains from the financials, properties, casinos and technology companies.
For the day, the index jumped 251.85 points or 1.01 percent to finish at 25,247.99 after trading between 24,836.21 and 25,324.66.
Among the actives, AAC Technologies skyrocketed 5.97 percent, while AIA Group was up 0.48 percent, Alibaba Group advanced 1.24 percent, Alibaba Health Info increased 0.94 percent, ANTA Sports accelerated 2.50 percent, China Life Insurance jumped 2.06 percent, China Mengniu Dairy spiked 2.59 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) improved 0.53 percent, China Resources Land surged 5.55 percent, CITIC rallied 2.35 percent, CNOOC sank 0.85 percent, Country Garden soared 5.01 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical fell 0.24 percent, Galaxy Entertainment gained 1.14 percent, Hang Lung Properties lost 0.47 percent, Henderson Land added 1.19 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas shed 0.67 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.95 percent, Li Ning was up 0.42 percent, Longfor soared 5.06 percent, Meituan climbed 1.80 percent, New World Development gained 0.15 percent, Sands China perked 1.34 percent, Sun Hung Kai Properties rose 1.00 percent, Techtronic Industries tumbled 2.02 percent, Xiaomi Corporation strengthened 2.18 percent and WuXi Biologics gathered 1.63 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is mixed as the NASDAQ and S&P 500 opened higher on Thursday and remained that way, while the Dow opened in the red and closed under pressure.
The Dow dropped 158.71 points or 0.44 percent to finish at 35,921.23, while the NASDAQ advanced 81.58 points or 0.52 percent to close at 15,704.28 and the S&P 500 rose 2.56 points or 0.06 percent to end at 4,649.27.
The rebound by the NASDAQ and S&P 500 came as some traders looked to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels after the drop on Tuesday and Wednesday dragged the major averages down well off Monday's record closing highs.
A notable decline by shares of Disney (DIS) weighed on the Dow, with the entertainment giant slumping by 7.1 percent after its Q3 numbers missed estimates on both the top and bottom lines.
But overall trading activity was subdued as some traders stuck to the sidelines amid the Veterans Day holiday. While the stock markets were open as usual on the day, banks, federal offices and the bonds markets all remained closed.
Crude oil futures settled higher on as traders weighed global energy demand and supply prospects. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December ended up by $0.25 or 0.3 percent at $81.59 a barrel.
Closer to home, Hong Kong will release final Q3 figures for gross domestic product later today. GDP is expected to rise 0.1 percent on quarter and 5.4 percent on year after slipping 0.9 percent on quarter and climbing 7.6 percent on year in the previous three months.