Asian shares make gains as oil price concerns
- 29 December 2015
- From the section Business
Image copyright AFP Asian shares rose on Tuesday despite another fall in oil prices overnight after Iran said it planned to increase exports once international sanctions are removed.
The price of US crude oil dropped more than 3% overnight, while Brent crude hovered near 11-year lows before stabilising.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index erased earlier losses to close up 0.6% to 18,982.23.
Oil prices are expected to continue to weigh on energy shares in the region.
Iran intends to increase exports by 500,000 barrels per day once the economic sanctions are removed, according to reports.
That would add to the global supply of oil, which has fallen in value by more than two-thirds since September 2015 on falling demand from China, the world’s second largest economy and largest consumer of commodities.
Toshiba’s restructuring
Elsewhere, shares in Toshiba rose by 2.7% on reports that the struggling electronics giant plans to ask for an additional $2.5bn (£1.7bn) in credit to fund its large-scale restructuring.
The company is reeling from a $1.3bn accounting scandal earlier this year.
Chinese shares headed higher with the Shanghai Composite up 0.9% to 3,563.74, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was higher by 0.3% to 28,442.75.
In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed up 1.2% to 5,267.30 after reopening from a four-day holiday.
The index also ended higher for the eighth consecutive day.
Shares in Woodside Petroleum finished up 0.8% despite the drop in oil prices.
South Korea’s Kospi index closed up 0.1% to 1,966.31, also reversing earlier losses.
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