Asian Stock Markets Gain on Bargain-Hunting, Wall Street Signals

Asian stock markets moved forward on Wednesday as traders bought shares beaten down on recent pandemic concerns and weighed a Wall Street futures market flashing green.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo all finished with gains, as did other regional exchanges except Sydney.

Japan's Nikkei 225 opened evenly and rose mildly through the day, finishing up 0.4% as investors bargain-hunted after three trading days of losses on the benchmark index.

The Nikkei 225 rose 113.86 to 27,935.62, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 159 to 64.

In other news, the au Jibun Bank Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index was upwardly revised to 54.5 in November from the flash reading of 54.2, and the final 53.2 in October, IHS Markit reported.

Also, capital spending by Japanese companies rose 1.2% in Q3 from a year earlier, up for the second straight quarter, reported the Finance Ministry.

The Hong Kong Hang Seng opened higher and held ground, finishing up 0.8% as traders bought shares at attractive values after sharp declines related to concerns raised by the omicron variant of the coronavirus. Casino shares lost ground again on possible crackdowns on Macau junket operators while property issues also retreated.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 183.66 to 23,658.92, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 31 to 27. The Hang Seng TECH Index rose 0.5% on the day, but the Mainland Properties Index declined 1.1%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.4% to 3,576.89.

In other news, the November Caixin China General Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 49.9 in November from 50.6 in October, reported IHS Markit and Caixin. Readings above 50 indicate sector expansion, while below 50 points to contraction.

On the other exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI rose 2.1%; the Taiwan TWSE added 0.9%; the Australian ASX 200 lost 0.3%; the Singapore Straits Times Index gained 1.9%, and the Thai Set inclined 1.4%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 1.1%.