Asian stocks steadied in morning trade to move modestly higher, led by gains in Hong Kong.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 73.14 points, or 0.5%, to 14,696.03
Corporate news took the lion’s share of attention. Shares of Yahoo Japan Corp. slid 9% after the company said it would pay ¥324 billion ($3.15 billion U.S.) to acquire wireless service provider eAccess from majority shareholder SoftBank Corp. SoftBank shares fell 2.2%.
Traders were also digesting data showing that household spending fell in Japan last month, defying expectations for a consumer spending boom ahead of Japan’s sales tax increase next week. Household spending fell 2.5% in February versus the 0.1% rise economists expected.
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong bolted higher 231.08 points, or 1.1%, to 22,065.53
China’s major banks this week have reported solid profits for 2013, easing for now lingering doubts around the sector’s financial health.
Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the nation’s largest bank by assets, late Thursday said its net profit for 2013 rose 10% from a year earlier. Shares rose 1.5% Friday.
In Sydney, stocks rose 0.3% as the Australian dollar continued its run higher. The currency last traded at $0.9293 from $0.9257 U.S. late in New York.
In other markets;
The Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 fell 3.74 points, or 0.2%, to 2,151.97
In Taiwan, the Taiex added 42.30 points, or 0.5%, to 8,779.97
Singapore’s Straits Times Index gained 9.71 points, or 0.3%, to 3,172.17
Korea’s Kospi Index inched ahead 3.03 points, or 0.2%, to 1,981
The New Zealand Exchange 50 index grew 16.36 points, or 0.3%, to 5,142.90
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 recovered 16.85 points, or 0.3%, to 5,366.94
