Hong Kong - Hong Kong's stock market rose by nearly 2.5 per cent Friday, breaking a two-day losing streak that saw nearly 5 per cent wiped off the value of shares.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index rose 326.37 points, or 2.47 per cent, to end the week on 13,554.67. Turnover was a modest 36.1 billion Hong Kong dollars (4.65 billion US dollars.)

Friday's rise was driven by the announcement of mortgage subsidies in the US and renewed confidence in China-listed stocks which performed strongly.

However, the Hong Kong index was down nearly 1 per cent over the course of the week following two days of consecutive losses on Wednesday and Thursday. (dpa)