Most markets in Asia ended higher Thursday.
The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 53.55 points, or 0.5%, to 10,285.90
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index hiked 79.28 points, or 0.3%, to 23,171.80
In Tokyo, financials were strong.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group jumped 3.7% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group climbed 3.5%.
Japanese stocks also continued to benefit from the yen’s recent falls against the U.S. dollar and the euro, while the market drew some support from the government’s upward revision of the July-September gross-domestic-product growth rate.
Insurance companies were higher thanks to Japanese government bonds.
Dai-ichi Life Insurance jumped 5.6% and T&D Holdings gained 4.4% after the yield on the 10-year bond jumped in morning trade, before pulling back in the afternoon.
Seoul stocks jumped to their highest finish in more than three years after the Bank of Korea left interest rates unchanged, while Sydney shares powered to a four-week high on a strong employment report.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped 33.24 points, or 1.7%, to 1,988.96, a closing level not seen since
November 2007, with technology shares gaining from expectations for strong holiday-season sales.
In Seoul, technology shares underpinned market gains, with Samsung Electronics climbing 3.3% and Hynix Semiconductor rising 3.7%. LG Display added 2.2% in the upbeat market.
Earlier in the day, the Bank of Korea decided to hold rates steady at 2.50%, as expected, after raising the policy rate by a quarter-point last month.
In Australia, shares got a boost from jobs data.
The unemployment rate fell to 5.2% in November from 5.4% in October; that was expected, but the number of employed was a surprise -- rising 54,600, nearly three times the forecast for 19,100.
Financials led gainers in Sydney. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group rose 2.2%, BHP Billiton Ltd. rose 1.3% and Fortescue Metals Group gained 0.9%.
CHINA
Markets in Shanghai fell Thursday, though, hobbled by concerns the People’s Bank of China will shortly raise interest rates.
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Index shed 48.52 points, or 1.5%, to 3,123.37
Shares in China fell on fears of an interest-rate increase this weekend. China’s November inflation data are scheduled to be released on Saturday.
Property shares also tumbled in China, with China Vanke Co. falling 3.8% in Shenzhen and Poly Real Estate Group sinking 4.5% in Shanghai.
In other markets
Singapore’s Straits Times Index moved up 7.40 points, or 0.2%, to 3,210.20
Taiwan’s Taiex Index gained back 50.05 points, or 0.6%, to 8,753.84
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index backslid 13.78 points, or 0.4%, to 3,280.56
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index added 41.40 points, or 0.8%, to 4,741.30
