Asian markets climbed after Japan shares took a roller-coaster ride in the immediate aftermath of the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) decision to adopt a negative interest rate policy.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 galloped 476.85 points, or 2.8%, to 17,518.30
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong hiked 487.28 points, or 2.5%, to 19,683.11
After the BOJ move, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Japan government bond (JGB) fell to a record low of 0.11% from around 0.22% before the decision.
In its statement on Friday, the central bank said it would continue with its quantitative and qualitative easing program (QQE) and negative interest rate policies for "as long as it is necessary for maintaining that target in a stable manner."
The U.S. dollar-yen pair gained advanced after the announcement, trading as high as 121.35, from around 118.50 before the news. The pair trimmed gains to trade around 120.82 after Japan stock markets closed.
Banks in Japan, which will likely see their profit dented by negative rates, sold off, with Mitsubishi UFJ falling 2.8% and Mizuho Financial ending down 1.7%. But exporters, which benefit from a weaker yen when their overseas earnings are translated into their home currency, rallied. Sony surged 6.1% and Nissan added 7.1%.
Australian gold miners were mostly down, with Alacer Gold losing 3.1% and shares of Newcrest falling 7.2% Spot gold traded nearly flat at $1,113.16 U.S. an ounce.
Elsewhere, resources stocks were mostly positive, with shares of Rio Tinto gaining 0.5% and BHP Billiton closing up 1.7%. Iron ore producer Fortescue was up 13.2%, while Atlas Iron saw retraced earlier losses to close up 6.7%
Among energy plays, Australia's Santos was up 7.5% while Woodside gained 6%. In Japan, Inpex was up by 5.9%, while Japan Petroleum saw gains of 6.3% South Korea's S-Oil was up 1.8%.
In Hong Kong, shares of CNOOC gained 8.6%, while mainland-listed shares of China Petroleum gathered 1.4%, and PetroChina closed up 0.4%
CHINA
The CSI 300 gained 92.33 points, or 3.2%, to 2,046.09
Among the biggest gainers on the index were brokerages Orient Securities, up 10%, and Huatai Securities, gaining 10%. China Railway Group was also up 9.9%
In other markets
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index spiked 66.66 points, or 2.6%, to 2,629.11
The Kospi in Korea added 5.12 points, or 0.3%, to 1,912.06
Taiwan’s Taiex index popped 175.5 points, or 2.2%, to 8,080.60
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 gained 20.52 points, or 0.3%, to 6,170.22
In Australia, the ASX 200 index improved 29.36 points, or 0.6%, to 5,005.52
