Asian equity markets were mostly higher on the first trading day of the new month, with sentiment supported Thursday by signs of an improvement in Chinese and U.S. manufacturing data.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 average moved up 105.60 points, or 1.2%, to 9,060.80
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index tacked on 50.48 points, or 0.3%, to 20,585.30
Asian shares dropped heavily in August as investors fretted about U.S. economic growth, although gloom started to lift by the end of the month, after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled that it may act to support the economy.
Casio Computer Co. climbed 3.9% and Kyocera Corp. rose 2.3% in Tokyo.
The Japanese government announced it would invest $2.6 billion U.S. into a major new small-flat-screen joint venture linking Sony Corp., Toshiba Corp. and Hitachi Ltd.
Sony shares rose 2%, Toshiba climbed 0.9%, and Hitachi gained 1%.
Tech-sector gains spread to Hong Kong trading, with Foxconn International Holdings Ltd. up 2.1%.
Goldman Sachs upgraded the firm to neutral from sell, with the broker saying that it believes further share price downside is limited.
Alibaba.com Ltd rose 2.4%, and Tencent Holdings Ltd. advanced 1.4%.
Also supporting the Japanese share market, steel makers posted notable gains, with Kobe Steel Ltd up 2.8%, and JFE Holdings Inc. up 2.8%.
The Nikkei reported that a stronger yen and lower prices for commodities are likely to reduce the burden of raw-material costs for Japan’s four biggest steel firms in fiscal 2012 by around 200 billion yen ($2.59 billion U.S.).
In Sydney trading, retail stocks accelerated gains after a July sales report beat expectations with a rise of 0.5%.
Shares in Myer Holdings Ltd. rose 2.8%, and Woolworths Ltd. gained 1.1%.
CHINA
Chinese manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) data out Thursday also showed an improvement
Shanghai’s CSI 300 Index shaved off 12.24 points, or 0.4%, to 2,834.53
Still, companies linked to the mainland Chinese economy came under some selling pressure, with Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. down 0.4% in Shanghai.
The input price components of the Chinese PMI data showed that inflation remained elevated in July. The Chinese government has been acting to curb inflation by tightening monetary policy, prompting worries of a hard landing for the economy.
In other markets:
Korea’s Kospi Index put on 4.62 points, or 0.1%, to 1,880.70
Taiwan’s Taiex Index gathered 16.40 points, or 0.2%, to 7,757.76
Singapore’s Straits Times Index removed 18.08 points, or 0.6%, to 2,867.18
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index moved ahead 9.20 points, or 0.3%, to 3,332.27
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 11 points, or 0.3%, to 4,307.50
