Asian equity benchmarks are trading up in the early deals on Wednesday, as the overnight gains on Wall Street and higher crude oil prices boosted risk appetite. Meanwhile, Japanese stocks rose buoyed by gains on Wall Street and a strong debut by three Japan Post shares, which surged as investors rushed to get a piece of the group's $12 billion initial public offering. Besides, a weaker yen lifted exporters' stocks.
Nikkei 225 surged 401.94 points or 2.15% to 19,085.18, Hang Seng strengthen 704.23 points or 3.12% to 23,272.66, Shanghai Composite added 85.60 points or 2.58% to 3,402.30, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI jumped 4.98 points or 0.30% to 1,682.54, Taiwan Weighted spurt 143.54 points or 1.65% to 8,856.73, KOSPI Index gained 1.86 points or 0.09% to 2,050.26, Straits Times increased 30.82 points or 1.03% to 3,030.38, and Jakarta Composite was up by 65.52 points or 1.45% to 4,598.61.