Investing.com – Asian stock markets were broadly higher on Thursday, as upbeat data on U.S. durable goods orders and strong earnings reports boosted sentiment, while markets continued to look ahead to Friday’s speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 1.55%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index rose 1.08%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index advanced 1.54%.
Data on Wednesday showed that U.S. durable goods orders rose the most in four months in July, while core durable goods orders, which exclude transportation items, rose unexpectedly.
The upbeat data, coupled with weakness in the yen, helped lift shares in Japanese exporters.
Consumer electronics giant Sony saw shares climb 2.1%, Panasonic shares surged 3.8%, while semiconductor manufacturer Elpida Memory added 2.5%.
Shares in automakers performed strongly, recouping some of their recent losses. Nissan shares rallied 7%, shares in Honda surged 5.35%, while Toyota saw shares rise 1.7%.
In Hong Kong, the nation’s second largest mobile phone provider China Unicom saw shares rally 11% after posting better-than-expected second quarter net income.
Shares in Bank of China Hong Kong jumped 5.3% after saying first-half profit rose 28% to CNY66.5 billion, as lending income improved.
Oil and gas major CNOOC saw shares climb 3.1% after posting record high earnings in the first half, as results were boosted by higher oil prices.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi Composite rose 0.55% as shares in the world’s second largest mobile phone maker Samsung jumped 3% after Steve Jobs announced his resignation as chief executive officer of main rival Apple.
Meanwhile, the outlook for European stock markets was upbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.9%, France’s CAC 40 futures edged 0.85% higher, the FTSE 100 futures rose 0.9%, while Germany's DAX futures indicated a gain of 0.8%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish government data on initial jobless claims.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 1.55%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index rose 1.08%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index advanced 1.54%.
Data on Wednesday showed that U.S. durable goods orders rose the most in four months in July, while core durable goods orders, which exclude transportation items, rose unexpectedly.
The upbeat data, coupled with weakness in the yen, helped lift shares in Japanese exporters.
Consumer electronics giant Sony saw shares climb 2.1%, Panasonic shares surged 3.8%, while semiconductor manufacturer Elpida Memory added 2.5%.
Shares in automakers performed strongly, recouping some of their recent losses. Nissan shares rallied 7%, shares in Honda surged 5.35%, while Toyota saw shares rise 1.7%.
In Hong Kong, the nation’s second largest mobile phone provider China Unicom saw shares rally 11% after posting better-than-expected second quarter net income.
Shares in Bank of China Hong Kong jumped 5.3% after saying first-half profit rose 28% to CNY66.5 billion, as lending income improved.
Oil and gas major CNOOC saw shares climb 3.1% after posting record high earnings in the first half, as results were boosted by higher oil prices.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi Composite rose 0.55% as shares in the world’s second largest mobile phone maker Samsung jumped 3% after Steve Jobs announced his resignation as chief executive officer of main rival Apple.
Meanwhile, the outlook for European stock markets was upbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.9%, France’s CAC 40 futures edged 0.85% higher, the FTSE 100 futures rose 0.9%, while Germany's DAX futures indicated a gain of 0.8%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish government data on initial jobless claims.