HONG KONG, April 21 (Reuters) - China Unicom Ltd topped gains among large caps in Hong Kong on Thursday, lifting the benchmark to a mild gain on the week as investors used earlier weakness to load up on laggard stocks.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed up 1.01 percent on the day at 24,138.31, and up 0.5 percent on the week. The China Enterprises Index finished up 1.24 percent on the day and 0.9 percent on the week at 13,659.35.
The Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.65 percent at 3,026.67 after a 0.3 percent gain on Wednesday. Large caps such as steel makers led as investor confidence was buoyed by gains in global markets.
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Energy, supporting by rising oil prices, outperformed the broader market for the second straight session after recording one of the steepest declines in the previous week, with the energy sub-index gaining 1.52 percent on the day and 0.5 percent on the week.
* The materials sub-index also outperformed the broader market, gaining 1.35 percent on the day and 1.5 percent on the week, led by Aluminium Corp of China Ltd (CHALCO) , which gained 2.2 percent.
* China Unicom's jump on Thursday seemed to have been boosted indirectly by China Mobile Ltd's earnings report late on Wednesday as investors switched out of China Mobile and bought into China Unicom, analysts said.
* While China Unicom rose 5.2 percent to a two-year high, China Mobile Ltd lost 0.9 percent after reporting a rise in earnings largely in line with expectations but failed to lift sentiment with no change in its growth outlook.
* Turnover approached HK$80 billion on Friday, but analysts expect turnover could reduce if high oil prices persist.
WEEK AHEAD:
* Hong Kong markets are closed from Friday for Good Friday and Easter and will reopen on Tuesday, April 26.
* The U.S. Federal Reserve will hold its next meeting on April 26-27. (Reporting by Clement Tan; Editing by Chris Lewis)