Investing.com - Asian stocks posted gains in Wednesday trade, boosted by Wall Street gains and prospects for progress on European debt following the reported resignation of Italy’s prime minister.
During early Asian trade, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 2.3% to 20,131.40, Japan’s Nikkei Index advanced 0.96% to 8,738.51, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 1.44% to 4,355.50.
The Topix Index of all shares listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, gained 1.26% to trade at 747.31.
On Tuesday, Italy’s Parliament approved a routine budget proposal, with opposition lawmakers abstaining, but leaving Berlusconi short of an absolute majority and facing an imminent confidence vote unless the prime minister were to step down.
The vote was widely expected to be a referendum on Berlusconi’s prime ministership and reports late Tuesday said he had signaled a willingness to resign.
European market watchers predict that a new Italian government may be better equipped to enact deficit reduction measures to help tackle the nation’s public debt, currently at 120% of gross domestic product, second to Greece among euro-zone members.
Events in Italy helped to lift share prices on Wall Street Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.84% to 12,170.20, the Nasdaq Composite Index added 1.2% to 2,727.49, and the S&P 500 rose 1.17% to close at 1,275.92.
On Wednesday, Japan’s Ministry of Finance reported that the country’s current-account surplus jumped to JPY1.19 trillion in September from JPY650 billion in August. Economists had forecast the surplus to hit JPY960 billion for the month.
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The surplus, however, remained 21% below its year-on-year figure for the month, due mainly to economic contraction following the March 11 earthquake and tsunamis.
Elsewhere, Australia’s Westpac-Melbourne Institute of Consumer Sentiment Index rose for the third straight month by 6.3% to 103.4, up from 97.4 in October.
Financial issues were among early leaders in regional trade, lifted by hopes on European debt resolution; Westpac Banking Corp. gained 1.2% after reporting a better than expected rise in home loan approvals.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia rose 0.6%, Industrial Bank of Korea added 1.4%, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. gained 1.8% and regional Japanese lender Chugoku Bank Ltd. was lifted by 1.3%.
Exporters across the region gained on hopes for improved global economic conditions with South Korea’s LG Electronics Co. Ltd. rising 1.9%, Sharp Corp. adding 1.8%, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. advancing 1% and Panasonic Corp. climbing 1.1%.
The outlook for European stocks was pessimistic. France’s CAC 40 futures was lower by 0.13% to 3,179.60, Britain’s FTSE 100 futures fell 0.06% to 5,623.00, while Germany’s DAX futures retreated 0.04% to 6,074.70.