Asian equity benchmarks are trading up in the early deals on Tuesday ahead of China's release of quarterly growth data and a policy meeting of the European Central Bank later in the week. Besides, crude oil prices rose above the $50 mark in Asian trades and the US dollar weakened on soft manufacturing data. Japan's Nikkei share average edged up helped by buying in stocks which are sensitive to domestic demand, but gains were limited as the yen inched higher, keeping investors on edge. Meanwhile, Hong Kong stocks climbed as property companies and gambling shares rebounded amid speculation US monetary policy will remain accommodative.
Nikkei 225 surged 8.04 points or 0.05% to 16,908.16, Hang Seng added 202.43 points or 0.88% to 23,239.97, Straits Times jumped 0.64 points or 0.02% to 2,817.71, KOSPI Index rose 4.90 points or 0.24% to 2,032.51, Jakarta Composite gained 28.64 points or 0.53% to 5,438.94, Taiwan Weighted increased 16.99 points or 0.19% to 9,193.21, Shanghai Composite spurt 15.71 points or 0.52% to 3,056.87, and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI was up by 7.40 points or 0.45% to 1,661.11.