BANGKOK – Asian stocks headed upward Wednesday after strong corporate earnings and rising consumer confidence sent Wall Street stocks to their highest levels in nearly three years.
Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.3 percent to 9,681.11, as stocks in the country's behemoth export sector powered upward amid signs the yen was ceding to the dollar.
Toyota Motor Corp., the world's No. 1 auto producer, rose 0.5 percent. Rivals also clawed back gains, including Honda Motor Corp. up 1.3 percent; and Nissan Motor Co., up 1.1 percent.
Shares of Canon Inc. jumped 6.2 percent, a day after the digital camera giant announced that first quarter profit had dropped slightly and that full year earnings would take a hit from disrupted production due to Japan's earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
But the company also announced that sales had increased 11.1 percent amid brisk demand for its point-and-shoot cameras in emerging markets and demand for laser printers and other office equipment in the U.S. and elsewhere.
South Korea's Kospi index rose 0.3 percent to 2,211.06 amid positive data from the Bank of Korea showing the country's economic growth rate accelerated sharply in the first quarter of this year.
Gross domestic product expanded 1.4 percent in the three months ended March 31, the ninth straight quarter of growth for South Korea, which has enjoyed a vibrant recovery from the global economic downturn — though like neighboring China and some other countries — is battling inflation.
The euro strengthened to $1.4673 from $1.4632 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar rose slightly against the Japanese yen to 81.67 from 81.63.
Benchmark crude for June delivery dropped 26 cents to $111.95 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract settled at $112.21 on the Nymex on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks jumped to their highest levels in nearly three years Tuesday thanks to signs that earnings are rising for U.S. companies and consumer confidence.
The Standard and Poor's 500 index reached its highest level since June 2008. It gained 11.99 points to 1,347.24. The Dow Jones industrial average also marked a new high for the year, rising 115.49 points to 12,595.37. The Nasdaq composite rose 21.66 points to 2,847.54.
Better-than-expected earnings reports from companies ranging from airlines to office products manufacturers helped drive a broad rally.
Delta Air Lines Inc. jumped 11 percent after reporting a loss that was far smaller than investors had expected. Ford Motor Co. rose nearly 1 percent after the carmaker reported its best first quarter earnings since 1998. Ford beat Wall Street's earnings estimates with stronger sales of new vehicles.
Stocks also got a lift from a report on consumer confidence that showed that worries about rising prices and unemployment eased in April.
The Federal Reserve concludes a two-day meeting Wednesday. Economists expect the Fed will leave short-term interest rates unchanged and end its $600 billion bond-buying program in June as scheduled. The bond-buying effort has been credited with lifting financial markets since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke first hinted at it last August.
