Shares gained across Asia on Tuesday, with energy stocks rallying, along with Japanese auto firms and Hong Kong-listed property developers.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 average moved ahead 105.34 points, or 1.1%, to 9,459.66
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index shook off its previous losing streak and charged up 251.08 points, or 1.2%, to 21,850.60
Energy companies rallied in Asia, as benchmark oil futures rose back above $94 U.S. a barrel in Nymex electronic trading.
PetroChina Co. added 1.8% in Hong Kong, Woodside Petroleum Ltd. rose 2.5% in Sydney, and Inpex Corp. climbed 2.3% in Tokyo.
In Australia, shares of Foster’s Group Ltd. surged 13.5% to 5.14 Australian dollars ($5.40 U.S.) after the firm rejected an A$4.90-a-share bid from rival SABMiller PLC. Foster’s said that the proposal from SABMiller undervalues the company.
Autos jumped in Tokyo, with Honda Motor Co. higher by 1.1%, Nissan Motor Co. rising 3.1%, and Mazda Motor Corp. adding 2.5%, though Toyota Motor Corp. underperformed slightly with a gain of 0.9%.
Among news helping the sector, Citigroup analysts raised their view of Japanese car makers to neutral from bearish on Tuesday.
The broker has assigned buy ratings to five companies where recovery is progressing rapidly, including Nissan, and no longer rates any company in the sector at sell. It also lifted its demand assumptions for Japan and the U.S. "in light of production recovery at Japanese auto makers."
In the Japanese retail space, Aeon Co. rose 3.8% after a separate Nikkei report tipped the company to post a 30% operating-profit increase for the March-May quarter.
Gains spread to the rest of the sector, with Fast Retailing Co. up 3.6%, and Takashimaya Co. climbing 2%.
Global apparel player Li & Fung Ltd. advanced in Hong Kong, rising 2.2%. Li & Fung had lost ground in recent sessions due to concerns over Europe’s economic prospects, as the region is a key source of revenue for the firm.
Hong Kong-listed real-estate stocks also took back some ground lost in the previous session, with Hang Lung Properties Ltd. ending with a 2.6% gain, Agile Property Holdings Ltd. ahead by 2.5%, and Sino Land Co. gaining 2.7%.
However, China Construction Bank Corp. ended down 2.3% in Hong Kong, after Bloomberg News reported that Bank of America Corp. may sell half of its $21-billion U.S. stake in the Chinese lender.
The report, which cited three people briefed on the plans, said Bank of America plans to hold about half its existing stake as a strategic investor but wouldn’t rule out divesting more of its holdings
In other markets;
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Index regained 34.18 points, or 1.2%, to 2,909.07
Korea’s Kospi Index picked up 28.52 points, or 1.4%, to 2,048.17
Taiwan’s Taiex Index added 66.94 points, or 0.8%, to 8,597.62
Singapore’s Straits Times Index gained 39.91 points, or 1.3%, to 3,053.51
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index docked 7.93 points to 3,459.56
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index tacked on 56.50 points, or 1.3%, to 4,508.20
