Investing.com - Upbeat trade figures from China supported momentum in Asian shares on Thursday, aiding solid gains acorss the region's main indexes.
The Nikkei 225 gained 1.21%, while the S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.24%. The Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.07%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.73%.
China reported its trade balance for November as a surplus of $44.61 billion, compared with a surplus of $46.30 billion seen and exports posted a slight increase of 0.1%, well above the decline of 5.0% expected, while imports jumped 6.7%, well above 1.3% fall seen.
The figures showed copper imports surged 31% in November from the previous month to 380,000 tonnes, the highest since June on construction demand.
U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Telecoms, Consumer Goods and Technology sectors led shares higher.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.55% to hit a new all time high, while the S&P 500 index gained 1.32%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 1.14%.