Japanese shares rose on Wednesday after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced it would modify its monetary policy framework.
The Nikkei 225 sprang up 315.47 points, or 1.9%, to 16,807.62
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index regained 139.04 points, or 0.6%, to 23,669.90
The BOJ kept its deposit rate unchanged at negative 0.1%, but introduced a new policy of targeting the yield curve. While the central bank abandoned its monetary base target, the BOJ said it would maintain its program of buying long-term Japanese government bonds so that the balance of its holdings increases by 80 trillion yen ($781 billion U.S.) annually.
In the currency market, the Japanese yen slipped as much as 102.78 against the U.S. dollar after the announcement, compared to an earlier high of 101.09 against the greenback.
Japanese banking shares closed sharply higher, following the BOJ's decision - negative interest rates usually tend to eat into the profit margins of banks.
Shares of Mitsubishi UFJ closed up 7.4%, SMFG was up 7.3% and Mizuho Financial was up 6.8%
Major exporters also reversed losses, with Nissan closing up 1.4%, Sony up 1.6% and Toyota climbing 3.2%
Wednesday's announcement from the BOJ, however, likely offset slight dent in sentiment seen in the morning session after data from Japan's Ministry of Finance, released before the market open, showed exports fell 9.6% on-year in August, sharply lower than the 4.8% drop economists expected in a poll of economists.
Imports dropped 17.3% in August, slightly less than a median estimate for a 17.8% decline
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 gained 9.24 points, or 0.3%, to 3,266.64
The Straits Times Index in Singapore faded 3.95 points, or 0.1%, to 2,850.74
The Kospi index in Korea added 10.28 points, or 0.5%, to 2,035.99
In Taiwan, the Taiex index added 66.92 points, or 0.7%, to 9,228.50
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 deducted 27.27 points, or 0.4%, to 7,281.17
In Australia, the ASX 200 moved higher 35.99 points, or 0.7%, to 5,339.56
