Investing.com - Asian stocks moved higher in Tuesday trade, lifted by apparent progress on Europe’s sovereign debt crisis and reports that China was prepared to purchase Italian bonds.
During early Asian trade, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.38% to 8,561.08, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 1.09% to 4,062.20.
Along with the Nikkei, the broader-based Topix Index of all issues listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange climbed 0.3% to 743.50.
Markets in South Korea and Hong Kong were closed for holidays.
Earlier, the Financial Times reported that China was in talks with Italian officials regarding an injection of funds, including the purchase of bonds and investments in strategic companies.
Last week, a delegation from the China Investment Corp., one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, visited Italy for a meeting with Italian government officials, including Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti.
Elsewhere on the European debt front, European Central Bank President Jean-Cluade Trichet said Monday, it remains his “working assumption” that Greece would take the steps needed to win approval from the ECB, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission to receive its next batch of funding.
Trichet’s comments followed a Wall Street Journal report that International Monetary Fund officials said Greece would receive its next round of bailout funds later this month.
U.S. shares posted mild gains following the reports, with Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.63%, the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.1%, and the S&P 500 edged up 0.7%.
In Tokyo, shares of Toyota Motor Corp. fell 0.4% after Fitch Ratings downgraded the company’s debt due to foreign-exchange risks.
Other Japanese automakers fared better in the morning session, with Mitsubishi Motors Corp. up 2.08%, and Honda Motor Co. Ltd higher by 1.06%.
Japanese technology stocks were broadly higher with Advantest Corp. jumping 3.4%, Kyocera Corp. added 2.45% and Toshiba Corp. climbed 2.04%.
Resource issues led the way in Sydney, with Origin Energy Ltd. up sharply by 3.36%. Rio Tinto Ltd. gained 1.4%, and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. added 2.37%.
The outlook for European stocks was optimistic. France’s CAC 40 futures was higher by 0.74% to 2,908.90, Britain’s FTSE 100 futures rose 0.41% to 5,180.10, while Germany’s DAX futures up 0.51% to 5,187.80.