Nikkei: 10,457.36 (+182.86) Hang Seng: 23,908.96 (+426.01) Shanghai Comp: 2,799.40 (8.70):ASIAN STOCKS rose, driving up a regional benchmark index by the most in two months, after companies reported higher earnings and US manufacturing expanded, boosting confidence in a global economic recovery.
Toyota rose 3.3 per cent to ¥3,480, the biggest support to the MSCI index. The company reported a 17 per cent increase in US sales in January.
Li and Fung, the largest supplier of clothes and toys to Wal-Mart Stores and Target, gained 2.2 per cent to HK$50.15 in Hong Kong.
Mitsubishi Electric jumped 7.4 per cent to ¥996, the second-biggest increase in the MSCI index. The company reported net income of ¥45.6 billion ($560 million) in the three months through December.
BHP advanced 2.4 per cent to A$45.70 in Sydney. Rio Tinto, the world’s top mining company, increased 2 per cent to A$85.82.
Mitsui, a trading company that counts commodities as its largest source of profit, rose 3.9 per cent to ¥1,449 in Tokyo.
Jiangxi Copper, China’s number one maker of the metal, climbed 3.4 per cent to HK$25.75 in Hong Kong. – (Bloomberg)
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