Asian Shares Follow Wall Street Higher On Earnings Boost

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks were rising on Thursday after Wall Street's three main stock indexes logged strong gains overnight on the back of upbeat consumer confidence data and solid earnings from corporate giants Nike and FedEx.

The Japanese yen firmed towards its recent four-month peak against the dollar while Treasuries were little changed, and gold held steady ahead of the latest weekly U.S. jobless claim numbers and the U.S. GDP data for the third quarter due out later in the day.

Oil extended gains for a fourth day after data showed a larger-than-expected draw in U.S. crude stockpiles.

Traders also tracked the fallout from Group of Seven sanctions targeting Russia's crude exports and revenues.

China's Shanghai Composite index rose 0.3 percent after the China Securities Regulatory Commission announced a series of measures to promote economic recovery. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 2.1 percent. Japan's Nikkei index edged up 0.1 percent as the government revised up its growth forecast for the next fiscal year.

Seoul stocks rose notably, with the Kospi average climbing 0.7 percent on more signs of economic reopening in China.

Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 jumped 0.7 percent, with banks, tech stocks and utilities leading the surge.

Kogan.com rose about 1 percent after it agreed to buy online furniture retailer Brosa out of administration in a low-cost move.

Readytech Holdings plunged 10 percent as private equity group Pacific Equity Partners pulled out of a proposed $514 million takeover of the company.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P NZX-50 index was up half a percent. U.S. stocks rose for a second straight session overnight. The Dow surged 1.6 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite climbed around 1.5 percent each.

European stocks ended Wednesday's session on a buoyant note after a report showed improvement in German consumer sentiment.

The pan European STOXX 600 advanced 1.7 percent. The German DAX rallied 1.5 percent, France's CAC 40 index surged 2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 1.7 percent.