Asia-Pacific shares were mixed by the close on Tuesday even as vaccine hopes once again lifted Wall Street to record highs. Airline stocks in the region got a boost.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained 107.69 points, or 0.4%, to end Tuesday’s session at 26,014.62, after touching a 52-week high on Monday.
The Japanese yen traded at 104.52 against the U.S. dollar, a touch firmer as compared to Monday.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index added 33.42 points, or 0.4%, to 26,415.09.
Airline stocks regionally jumped on the vaccine development.
In Australia, Qantas rose 1.5%, while Air New Zealand jumped around 2.7%.
Over in Japan, Japan Airlines jumped 3.7%, while All Nippon Airways surged more than 4%.
Singapore Airlines bounced nearly 5%, and Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific surged 7%.
Over in Singapore, the Straits Times index jumped nearly 1% in the afternoon. The country reported non-oil domestic exports that were far off expectations, falling 3.1% year-on-year, as compared to forecasts of a 5.7% rise.
Australian indexes were marginally higher. The bourse resumed trading on Tuesday after a nearly full-day trading halt Monday that it said was due to a software issue which created "inaccurate market data."
Oil stocks in Australia, too, saw gains by the close. Santos rose 3.4%, Oil Search surged 4.3%, and Beach Energy rocketed past 6%.
The Australian dollar was at 0.7303 against the dollar, strengthening from the 0.72 mark yesterday.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 faded 9.38 points, or 0.2%, to 4,894.79.
Meanwhile, copper prices hit a 29-month high on Monday, according to Reuters. That reflected optimism around demand in China after the country reported better-than-expected factory output in October.
In other markets
In Korea, the Kospi index docked 3.38 points, or 0.2%, to 2,539.15.
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index advanced 41.18 points, or 0.3%, to 13,593.01.
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index moved higher 30.55 points, or 1.1%, to 2,778.55
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 gained 20.11 points, or 0.2%, to 12,765.03
In Australia, the ASX 200 acquired 13.88 points, or 0.2%, to 6,498.21.
