Asian stocks rallied Tuesday, with resources and banking firms among the best performers, as investors showed more appetite for riskier assets in the wake of strong U.S. equity gains.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 average added 102.55 points, or 1.2%, to 8,953.90
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index vaulted 339.06 points, or 1.7%, to 20,204.20
The gains in Asia followed a positive finish for U.S. stocks, where sentiment was buoyed by an upbeat report on personal spending
RBC Capital Markets strategists described upward revisions to the previous month’s U.S. personal spending data as the "icing on the cake" for investors.
Financial stocks rose in Asia, tracking sharp gains for the sector in U.S. and European trading hours after news of a merger between Greece’s EFG Eurobank Ergasias SA and Alpha Bank SA.
In Japan, Nomura Holdings Inc. added 2.5%, and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. rose 1.8%.
Shares in Aozora Bank Ltd surged 8.2% amid reports that Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) was considering a takeover of the Japanese bank.
Shares in ANZ lost 0.2% in the Sydney session, underperforming its peers, with Macquarie Group Ltd. putting on 3.2%.
Hong Kong-listed shares of China Construction Bank Corp. gained 1.8%, shrugging off news that Bank of America Corp. will sell half of its stake in the Chinese lender.
Technology shares also showed strength, with Sony Corp. climbing 3.5%, Toshiba Corp. up 2.1% and Elpida Memory Inc. adding 1.8% in Tokyo trading, while LG Electronics Inc. surged 4.1% in the Korean session.
Auto makers posted solid gains in Japan, with Hino Motors Ltd. adding 4.0%, Isuzu Motors Ltd. rising 3.4% and Mazda Motor Corp. gaining 3.1%.
Retail stocks underperformed in Tokyo trading, however, after government data showed July sales fell short of expectations, with sector-heavyweight Fast Retailing Co. Ltd. losing 0.3%.
Resource stocks climbed across the region, with Jiangxi Copper Co. Ltd. adding 2.9% and Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. rising 4% in Hong Kong trading.
Rio Tinto Ltd. gained 1.7% and Fortescue Metals Group added 1.5% in the Sydney session.
In other markets:
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Index slipped 11.07 points, or 0.4%, to 2,841.74
Korea’s Kospi Index gained 14.32 points, or 0.8%, to 1,843.82
Taiwan’s Taiex Index accumulated 68.18 points, or 0.9%, to 7,646.19
Singapore’s Straits Times Index had the day off
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index amassed 11.73 points, or 0.4%, to 3,317.73
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up 5.90 points, or 0.1%, to 4,269.20
