Stocks across the Asia-Pacific basin were mostly higher Friday, with indexes in Japan and South Korea advancing on gains in Kyocera Corp. and Samsung Electronics as the technology sector shadowed Nasdaq's rise to a six-year high.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index rose 218.84 points, or 1.30 percent, to 17,057.01 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 228.04 points, or 1.2 percent, at 19,613.41.
Japanese stocks were buoyed by the dollar's rise above 120 yen, a boon to the nation's key export sector. The stronger dollar prompted investors to snap up Kyocera Corp., Sony Corp. and NEC Corp.
Kyocera jumped 3.04 percent to 11,180 yen ($92.40), Sony added 2.39 percent to 5,560 yen ($45.95) and NEC posted a 4.13 percent gain to 605 yen ($5).
However, traders said they expect nervous trading next week ahead of the Bank of Japan's policy meeting, but expectations for strong corporate earnings may start to improve market sentiment.
Elsewhere:
BANGKOK: Thai shares rose 1.3 percent to 645.71 points in mild trade on gains in blue chips, but the index was off an early high at 648.48 on light profit-taking ahead of the weekend.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian shares ended higher on strong foreign buying interest in construction, plantation and government-linked counters. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was up 1.2 percent to 1,119.33.
MANILA: Philippine shares advanced, lifted by Wall Street's advance, lower crude oil prices and hopes of a favorable outcome of the weekend summit of Southeast Asian leaders in central Cebu city. The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index rose 52.17 points, or 1.8 percent, to 2,992.33.
SEOUL: South Korean shares rose, mainly buoyed by heavyweights Samsung Electronics and Posco following their fourth quarter results and share buyback plans. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 23.06 points, or 1.7 percent, to 1,388.37.
SINGAPORE: Singapore's shares rose, led by banking and property stocks. The benchmark index surged 39.4 points, or 1.3 percent, to 3,009.09 points. Traders said the index may still be on the uptrend in the next few weeks.
TAIPEI: Taiwanese shares rose slightly, with technology heavyweights leading the way to reverse a two-day decline. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange gained 143.16 points, or 1.9 percent, to 7,761.71.
WELLINGTON: New Zealand's stocks edged up as profit-taking mostly negated positive leads from Australia and the United States. The benchmark NZX-50 index rose 2.1 points, or 0.06 percent, to 4,051.84.
SYDNEY: Australian shares closed higher, led by renewed confidence about global growth and gains overnight on Wall Street. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 73.9 points to 5,638.8, its highest level in a week.
With files from wire services
