Asian Shares Rise On Economic Optimism

Asian stocks rose on Tuesday, with expectations for more fiscal stimulus and global efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease offering support.

Japanese shares rose amid a weaker yen and significant advances in some heavyweights on optimism about the outlook for the global economy. The recent stock price rally reflected market optimism over the global economic outlook, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said.

The Nikkei average gained 383.60 points, or 1.28 percent, to settle at 30,467.75, marking its best close since August 1, 1990. The broader Topix index closed 0.57 percent higher at 1,965.08.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group surged 4.2 percent, semiconductor company Screen Holdings soared 6.9 percent and steelmaker Sumitomo Metal Mining climbed 5.1 percent.

Australian markets rose notably to hit an 11-month high as mining behemoth BHP rewarded shareholders with the biggest dividend in its history and National Australia Bank posted a pickup in quarterly profit from the previous two quarters.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 48.40 points, or 0.70 percent, to 6,917.30, while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 39.60 points, or 0.55 percent, at 7,189.30.

BHP Group shares jumped 2.7 percent after the world’s top miner reported a 16 percent rise in its underlying half-year profit. Rival Rio Tinto rallied 3 percent and South32 advanced 1.5 percent on the back of a surge in commodity prices.

Energy stocks such as Woodside Petroleum, Santos and Origin Energy soared 2-4 percent after oil prices hit 13-month highs on fears of Middle East tensions.

National Australia Bank shares gained 1.1 percent. The country’s second-biggest lender said its first-quarter cash profit was flat versus a year ago.

Westpac Banking Corp rose half a percent and ANZ added 1 percent as minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s February 2 monetary policy meeting showed Australia’s economy is recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic at a faster than expected pace.

Seoul stocks ended higher for the third day running as foreign investors extended their buying streak on hopes of quicker economic recovery. The benchmark Kospi rose 16.25 points, or 0.52 percent, to finish at 3,163.25. Giant internet portal operator Naver rallied 2.2 percent and its rival Kakao added 2.4 percent.

Export prices in South Korea were down 2.3 percent year-on-year in January, the Bank of Korea said in a report – beating forecasts for a decline of 5.1 percent after sinking 5.4 percent in December.

New Zealand shares rebounded from a five-day slide, with the benchmark NZX-50 index rising 100.16 points, or 0.80 percent, to 12,610.72. Meridian climbed 2.8 percent and Mercury NZ jumped 3.1 percent, while Contact Energy fell 2.1 percent on fund raising reports.

Markets in Taiwan and China were closed for the Lunar New Year holidays. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index surged 1.90 percent to close at 30,746.66 in its first trading session since Thursday following the Lunar New Year holidays. The U.S. markets were closed overnight for the President’s Day holiday.