Asian markets on Thursday ended broadly higher as investors snapped up shares of commodity producers and airlines on hopes the global economic recovery is gaining steam.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo galloped ahead 173.03 points, or 1.7%, to 10,443.80.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index added another 365.59, or 1.7%, on top of Wednesday’s 500-point-plus surge to 21,768.51, a 13-month closing high.
Resources and energy stocks paced gains in the Asian-Pacific region, with Rio Tinto up 2.2% and BHP Billiton gaining 1.5% in Sydney, while Sumitomo Metal Mining jumped 4.5% in Tokyo.
Aluminum Corp. of China's 1.7% rise in Shanghai was outdone by a 3.5% gain in Hong Kong, while China Shenhua Energy gained 2.3% in Hong Kong and 3.4% in Shanghai.
Among energy plays, Woodside Petroleum rose 1.5% after U.S.-based Anadarko Petroleum said a consortium including Woodside had discovered oil off the coast of Sierra Leone. In Tokyo, Inpex climbed 3.5%, SK Energy added 1.3% in Seoul, New Zealand Oil & Gas rose 1.8%, PetroChina rose 1.5% in Hong Kong
In Tokyo, NEC Electronics added 0.2% after the company and Renesas Technology unveiled details of their merger process, which included a massive capital injection from their parent companies.
Toyota Motor ended up 1.9% on news the auto giant was preparing a $1-billion U.S. marketing blitz to boost U.S. sales in the fourth quarter, and planned to expand its line of gas-electric hybrid models under the Prius name, according to people briefed on the plans.
HSBC's Hong Kong shares surged 4.1%, Australia's Macquarie Group gained 4.5% and China Merchants Bank's Hong Kong-listed shares added 1.2%, while its China-listed ones rose 1.2%.
In Singapore, DBS Group added 1.7%, and Woori Finance rose 1.2% in Singapore.
But Japanese financials traded mostly lower after Shizuka Kamei, the newly appointed banking and postal service minister, said he will seek to help small companies by allowing them to extend their loan payments by three years.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group sank 5.6% and Mizuho Financial Group fell 1.5%, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial losing 1.9%.
Airline stocks rallied across the region on hopes of a further improvement in passenger and cargo load factors in coming months as the global economic growth improved. Cathay Pacific Airways rose 5.5% in Hong Kong after Citigroup upgraded the stock to "hold" from "sell", with Jet Airways flaring up 19%. Singapore Airlines stock was trading up 0.8% and Korean Air rose 2.9%, while Air New Zealand climbed 0.8%.
Citic Pacific added 2.5% in Hong Kong, building on its 5.3% jump in the previous session, amid expectations that it may list its shares in Shanghai.
In foreign-exchange markets, the euro was higher against the U.S. dollar as the appetite for risk continued to pick up. The single currency was at $1.4731 U.S., compared with $1.4709 U.S. in New York. It also bought 133.74 yen, against 133.72 yen. The U.S. dollar was at 90.74 yen, compared with 90.86 yen.
Improved market sentiment also showed up in the Australian and New Zealand dollars, both of which jumped sharply against the dollar, before coming off the highs in late afternoon trade
Elsewhere:
Shanghai’s 300 Composite Index put back 61.86 points, or 1.9%, to 3,320.10.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index slid 1.82 points to 2,672.60.
South Korea’s Kospi index prospered another 12.14 points, or 0.7%, to 1,695.47
Taiwan’s Taiex tacked on 37.06 points, or 0.5%, to 7,477.30
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index gained 35.21 points, or 1.1%, to 3,152.80
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 improved 64.50 points, or 1.4%, to 4,714.90, a closing level it hasn't seen since October 2008.
