Asian stocks moved higher early on Tuesday, with Japan leading the region up, as concerns over the situation in Ukraine receded.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index recovered 133.60 points, or 0.9%, to 14,411.23
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong gained 109.55 points, or 0.5%, to 21,583.50
The improved sentiment was most evident in Japan, where the yen -- a safe-haven currency bought in periods of turmoil -- softened against the dollar overnight.
The U.S. dollar rose as high as ¥101.96 on Tuesday--compared with ¥101.75 late Monday in New York, though it gave up those gains as the session progressed and was last trading at ¥101.72.
The weaker yen had a knock-on effect on stocks in Japan, with the weaker local currency pushing the Nikkei up 1% -- putting the market on a recovery track from its 6.2% slump last week, its worst weekly performance since June last year.
The Australian dollar got a short boost from the latest minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia. The Aussie went as high as $0.9112 U.S. after the central bank said that interest rates could be unchanged for "some time," though it quickly went back to trade a touch lower on the day and was last at $0.9078 U.S.
CHINA
The Shanghai CSI 300 Index slid 4.91 points, or 0.2%, to 2,138.13
In currencies, the yuan hit an 11-month low of 6.1898 to the U.S. dollar in early trading as the Chinese currency continued to weaken after the People’s Bank of China over the weekend decided to widen the daily range the currency could trade in to 2%.
The yuan was last trading at 6.1882 to the dollar from its Monday close of 6.1781.
In other markets;
In Taiwan, the Taiex improved 31.84 points, or 0.4%, to 8,731.94
Singapore’s Straits Times Index added 1.70 points, or 0.1%, to 3,093.84
Korea’s Kospi Index took on 12.68 points, or 0.7%, to 1,940.21
The New Zealand Exchange 50 index gained 47.64 points, or 0.9%, to 5,135.66
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 27 points, or 0.5%, to 5,344.56.
