06:37 AM EDT, 04/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets forged forward on Monday on Wall Street cues and signals that mainland China governments are willing to boost the nation's ailing property sector.

Hong Kong and Shanghai finished in the green, as did most other regional exchanges. Tokyo was closed on holiday.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened higher and held ground, finishing up 0.5% as traders bargain-hunted real estate shares.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 95.76 to 17,746.91, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 55 to 24. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 0.1% on the day, but the Mainland Properties Index rose 3.7%.

Leading the upside was Country Garden Services, gaining 11%, while Sinopharm lost 6.3%. Giant insurer AIA gained 6.1% after reporting earnings, and boosting a stock buyback plan.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.8% to 3,113.04.

In economic news, in moves to boost property markets, the mainland China city of Chengdu will no longer review homebuyers' qualifications for property purchases and authorities vowed to meet reasonable funding needs of developers, reported The South China Morning Post.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI rose 1.2%; the Taiwan TWSE inclined 1.9%; the Australian ASX 200 inclined 0.8%; the Singapore Straits Times Index rose 0.1%, and the Thai Set inclined 0.2%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 1.3%.