Asia report: Markets mostly higher, China off for Lunar New Year

Markets in Asia finished mostly higher on Thursday, taking their lead from the positive overnight session on Wall Street as the dollar slid further.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 added 1.47% to 21,464.98, as the yen strengthened 0.52% against the dollar to last trade at JPY 106.44.

Technology and financial plays were significant gainers, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group rising 1.82% and Sony finishing ahead 1.87%.

Manufacturers were also on the front foot, with Fanuc Manufacturing rising 2.1% and Komatsu ahead 3.95%.

Fresh data out of Tokyo showed core machinery orders were down 11.9% in December - far wider than the 2.3% median drop predicted.

On the mainland, markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday, as were those in South Korea.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up 1.97% at 31,115.43, with financials among the biggest winners by end-of-play.

China Construction Bank finished the session 4.69% higher, and HSBC was up 2.01%.

Oil prices were slightly higher, with Brent crude last up 0.42% at $64.63 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate adding 0.88% to $61.14.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 added 1.16% to 5,909.00, with energy, gold and materials posting star performances among the sectors.

Of the major miners, BHP was up 3.56% and Rio Tinto added 4.06% in Sydney trading.

Earnings season continued down under, with Origin Energy ahead 6.86% after it announced underlying EBITDA grew 51% in the first half to AUD 1.49bn.

The company also lifted its guidance for the full-year, to a range of between AUD 1.78bn and 1.85bn, from a previous range of AUD 1.7bn to 1.8bn.

Insurance giant Suncorp lost 2.4% after it reported a 15.8% drop in half-year net profit to AUD 452m, with the board blaming higher-than-expected claims on natural hazards as a major factor.

That was short of the AUD 486m net profit predicted by Thomson Reuters.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 was up 0.06% at 8,063.33, led higher by fishing and seafood processing group Sanford, which was 4% higher.

Other top performers in Wellington were Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and Metro Performance Glass, which added 2.3% and 3.5% respectively.

Both of the down under dollars were stronger on the greenback, with the Aussie last ahead 0.44% at AUD 1.2561 and the Kiwi advancing 0.47% to NZD 1.3511.