Asian markets boosted as Beijing hints at more QE

Asian markets were boosted overnight by speculation the Chinese government is poised to begin loosening its monetary policy in response to the impacts of the eurozone debt crisis.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index climbed 0.7% to 18,997.3, while the S&P/ASX 200 index rose 1.14% to 4,152.2 on the news the authorities in China may move to stimulate the housing market. Yesterday UBS indicated that China was due to take action to prevent a collapse of its housing market by easing curbs on the sector as early as mid-2012, according to a Bloomberg television interview with UBS head of China equity strategy Chen Li. The Shanghai Composite index also gained 2.7% on the news to 2,286.19, while Japan's Nikkei 225 showed a positive gain of 0.38% to reach 8,422.26. However, s...