World stocks climbed Friday as economic data and company earnings reinforced confidence that a recovery from the global recession is underway.

Nearly all markets in Asia gained and European bourses were stronger in early trading after a jump in U.S. home sales propelled the Dow Jones industrials to its first close above 9,000 since January.

South Korea's benchmark index gained modestly after news that Asia's fourth-largest economy grew at its fastest pace in nearly six years in the second quarter, adding to evidence the region is bouncing back.

Another slew of stronger-than-expected earnings from U.S. companies including Ford Motor Co. added to the case for an economic turnaround.

Tokyo shares were up nearly two per cent and oil prices added to the big gains made overnight amid signs the U.S. economy, the world's largest, is improving.

But there are still nagging doubts about whether the massive gains in world markets since March can be sustained.

'Quite irrational'

"What is happening in the markets is quite irrational," said Peter Lai, investment manager at DBS Vickers in Hong Kong. "The global economic situation doesn't justify the rise in stock prices. The rally is driven by liquidity and hot money not by fundamentals."

As trading got underway in Europe, benchmarks in Britain, France and Germany were all up nearly one per cent.

Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average rose 151.61 points, or 1.6 per cent, to 9,944.55 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 165.09, or 0.8 per cent, at 19,982.79.

South Korea's Kospi was 0.4 per cent higher after figures showed the economy grew 2.3 per cent in the second quarter as increased government spending and record low interest rates helped to insulate it from the global recession. Singapore and China have also released stronger growth figures in recent weeks.

In Seoul, shares of Samsung Electronics rose 0.7 per cent after the world's biggest maker of memory chips and flat screen TVs reporting a 5.2 per cent rise in second-quarter profit.

Elsewhere, Australia's market gained 0.6 per cent, Singapore was 1.7 per cent higher while Taiwan's benchmark edged lower by 0.1 per cent. China's Shanghai market gained 1.3 per cent.

In the U.S. on Thursday, Wall Street was buoyed by news that existing home sales rose in June for the third straight month and by a higher-than-expected amount.

The Dow Jones Industrials, the stock market's best-known indicator, shot up almost 190 points to 9,069.29, its highest level since November, and all the other big indexes gained more than two per cent.

Meanwhile, in Toronto on Thursday the S&P/TSX composite index jumped 2.3 per cent or 243.33 points to 10,675.68.