New York - US stocks rallied at day's end Tuesday as energy and technology shares led the way and investors snapped up bargain basement prices.

The three major indices closed up despite a drop in confidence among homebuilders that was the lowest since record-keeping began in 1985, Bloomberg financial news service reported.

Hewlett-Packard Co jumped 14 per cent as earnings topped analysts' estimates, while Exxon Mobil Corp climbed more than 4 per cent.

Hong Kong - Hong Kong stocks sunk 4.5 per cent lower Tuesday amid increasing pessimism sparked by news of layoffs in the financial sector.

The Hang Seng Index lost 613 points to close the day at 12,915. Turnover was 44.8 billion Hong Kong dollars (5.7 billion US dollar).

Analysts said investors were disheartened by news of job losses with the financial sector leading the fall.

Singapore - Singapore shares drop

Bangkok - Thai shares lost 3.28 per cent Tuesday on jitters from news of Japan's recession.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index ended at 419.97, down 14.24 points, on 7.9 billion baht (229.7 million dollars) in transactions.

"The Thai market was following the Hong Kong and Tokyo bourses down," said Phuwadol Larpudomsuk, an analyst at Asia Plus Securities. "Investors are worried about the impact of recession in Japan on the region."

Beijing - China's main stock