Stocks in Asia-Pacific were higher on Thursday after the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged to an all-time high overnight despite unrest in Washington.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 recovered 434.19 points, or 1.6%, to 27,490.13.
Earlier during the session, the Nikkei shot as high as 27,624.73, and surpassed the recent 52-week intraday high of around 27,600 on Dec. 29 — a level not seen since August 1990.
The Japanese yen traded at 103.41 per U.S. dollar after trading at levels below 102.8 against the greenback yesterday.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 143.78 points, or 0.5%, to 27,548.52.
Shares of Chinese telecommunications firms listed in Hong Kong fell after the New York Stock Exchange made yet another U-turn on its decision to delist the firms. Trading of the three securities will be suspended at 4 p.m. ET Monday, the exchange said.
By the Thursday market close in Hong Kong, shares of China Mobile in the city plunged 7.2%, while China Unicom fell 11.4% and China Telecom declined 9.4%.
Those developments came following days of uncertainty after U.S. President Donald Trump signied an executive order that sought to bar American firms and individuals from investing in firms that the administration alleged aid the Chinese military.
Stocks in Australia jumped. Australia’s goods and services exports rose 3% month-on-month in November on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to statistics released Thursday by the country’s Bureau of Statistics.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7776, having risen from levels below $0.77 this week.
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 added 95.99 points, or 1.8%, to 5,513.66.
In Korea, the Kospi index regained 63.47 points, or 2.1%, to 3,031.68
In Singapore, the Straits Times gained 43.96 points, or 1.5%, to 2,906.97.
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index zoomed 230.87 points, or 1.5%, to 15,214.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 climbed 151.74 points, or 1.1%, to 13,485.67.
In Australia, the ASX 200 hiked 104.9 points, or 1.6% to 6,711.95.
