Sawt Falasteen - Markets mostly rise before key US GDP data

Asian bourses mainly rose as the majority returned from the Lunar New Year break on an upbeat note.

Investors were also awaiting the latest earnings from US giants American Airlines, Intel, Mastercard and Visa, as well as French luxury goods group LVMH.

Oil rose on hopes of growing Chinese demand, while the dollar steadied before fourth-quarter US gross domestic product (GDP).

- Standby mode -

"The markets are now on standby mode, awaiting the release of US GDP," said ActivTrades analyst Ricardo Evangelista.

"The majority of analysts expect the numbers to confirm the slowing down of the American economy, due to the impact of inflation and higher interest rates on consumer spending and business investment."

Next week, the Fed will make its latest policy decision since slowing its pace of rate hikes in December, after four straight 75 basis-point increases.

Speculation has been building in recent weeks that the bank could take its foot off the pedal as data points to inflation coming down quicker than expected and other indicators suggest last year's tightening was taking hold in the economy.

And while there remains some concern that the world's top economy could tip into recession, there is growing hope it can achieve a so-called soft landing.

"All eyes will be on the GDP snapshot, jobs and home sales data out later, indicating whether demand is being squeezed out of the economy and whether more storm clouds are gathering on the horizon," cautioned Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.

Traders are also eyeing the Fed's preferred inflation gauge that is due on Friday.

Back in Asia on Thursday, Hong Kong led the way again to hit an 11-month high, helped by hopes that China's reopening will fuel a strong recovery this year.

But uneven earnings from tech giants largely kept sentiment in check and saw Wall Street end on a soft note, with the Nasdaq in the red.

Still, Asia continued to outperform after a strong start to the year.

Hong Kong jumped two percent while Singapore, Wellington and Jakarta were also up.

Seoul gained more than one percent as data showed South Korea's economy shrank in October-December, giving its central bank room to tone down its pace of rate hikes.

On the downside, Tokyo, Manila and Bangkok fell. Shanghai, Sydney and Taipei were closed for holidays.

- Key figures around 1130 GMT -

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 7,758.96 points

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.3 percent at 15,124.32

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 7,094.62

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 4,173.03

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 2.4 percent at 22,566.78 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 27,362.75 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: Closed for holiday

New York - Dow: FLAT at 33,743.84 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0906 from $1.0916 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2391 from $1.2403

Euro/pound: UP at 88.02 pence from 88.01 pence

Dollar/yen: UP at 129.71 yen from 129.59 yen

Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.6 percent at $86.65 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.8 percent $80.76 per barrel

P.Tamimi--SF-PST