Asian stocks swung between gains and losses as concern that oil near a nine-month high will crimp economic growth was countered by a surge in Alibaba.com Ltd. and gains by telecommunications companies.
Nikkei 225 9,554 +90.98 +0.96%
Hang Seng 21,549.28 +70.56 +0.33%
S&P/ASX 200 4,293.11 +1.91 +0.04%
Shanghai Composite 2,403.59 +22.16 +0.93%
Alibaba, China’s No. 1 e-commerce web portal, jumped 42 percent after its parent offered to privatize the company.
NTT DoCoMo Inc. , Japan’s largest mobile-phone operator by market value, climbed 2 percent after a report it expanded capacity to prevent service glitches.
Kumho Petro Chemical Co. , a Korean maker of synthetic rubber and chemicals, slid 4.3 percent as crude oil remained above $105 a barrel. Wilmar International Ltd. , the world’s No. 1 palm-oil processing company, dropped 11 percent after its earnings fell short of analyst forecasts.