Asian stocks hit a 5-1/2-month high on Thursday as oil prices rallied and the yen resumed its decline on expectations of further easing from the Bank of Japan next week. Investors remained focused on the European Central Bank meeting due later in the day, although no change in policy is expected after unprecedented monetary stimulus at the March policy meeting.
Chinese shares erased early gains, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite swinging between gains and losses before closing 19.69 points or 0.66 percent lower at 2,952.89. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index climbed 385.94 points or 1.82 percent to finish at 21,622.25.
Japanese shares rose for a third day to hit a 2-1/2 month high, as oil prices bounced back and positive U.S. housing data as well as expectations of further policy easing from the Bank of Japan weakened the yen to near the 110 level.
The Nikkei average climbed 457.08 points or 2.70 percent to end at 17,363.62, its highest level since February 3. The broader Topix index closed 2.04 percent higher at 1,393.68.
Shares of Mitsubishi Motors Corp plunged 20 percent to wipe $2.5 billion off its value over the last two days after the automaker admitted manipulating fuel economy data for about 625,000 vehicles sold in Japan. Rivals Toyota, Honda and Nissan climbed 2-3 percent.
Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing jumped 5 percent and energy explorer Inpex Corp advanced 5.7 percent. Sony shares closed 1.4 percent higher. After the closing bell, the electronics giant said its full-year operating profit would be less than initially forecast due to a hefty impairment charge in its camera business.
Australian shares hit a fresh three-month high, led by mining and energy shares. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 climbed 56.70 points or 1.09 percent to 5,272.70 and the broader All Ordinaries rose 55.20 points or 1.05 percent to 5,336.40.
BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group rose 2-4 percent after iron ore prices jumped to a 10-month high on Wednesday. BHP Billiton spinoff South32 jumped 8 percent after saying it is on track to meet its FY16 guidance. Copper and gold miner Oz Minerals gained 1.2 percent after reaffirming its production guidance.
Woodside Petroleum, Santos and Origin Energy soared 6-9 percent as oil prices held steady in Asian deals after climbing 4 percent overnight. Wesfarmers, the operator of Coles supermarkets, advanced 2.5 percent on reporting a solid increase in third-quarter sales. The big four banks rose more than 1 percent each.
On the economic front, Australian companies remain upbeat about the country's future despite some market turbulence earlier this year, NAB's quarterly business survey has found, with both business conditions and confidence indexes easing slightly in the first quarter.
Seoul shares reached their highest levels this year, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street and amid foreign fund inflows ahead of the upcoming earnings season. The benchmark Kospi average rose 16.27 points or 0.81 percent to 2,022.10, with Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and SK Innovation rising more than 1 percent each.
Woori Bank rallied 2.5 percent. The country's second-largest bank reported a 52 percent jump in Q1 profit on reduced costs involving nonperforming loans.
New Zealand's NZX-50 index rose 4.84 points or 0.07 percent to 6,906.10, another record high mirroring firm global cues. While dual-listed stocks Westpac and ANZ jumped over 3 percent, Infratil rose 1.1 percent after signing a $30 million deal with electric vehicle company Wrightspeed Inc.
Among those that fell, Contact Energy, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, Spark New Zealand and Kathmandu Holdings dropped 1-2 percent.
An index measuring consumer confidence in New Zealand improved in April after falling in the previous two months, the latest survey released by ANZ Bank and Roy Morgan showed. The corresponding index rose to 120.0 from 118.0 in the previous month.
India's Sensex was up 104 points after climbing as much as 225 points earlier in the day to breach the psychological 26,000 level for the first time since January 4. Benchmark indexes in Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan were up around half a percent while Singapore's Straits Times was marginally lower.
U.S. stocks eked out modest gains overnight, as solid data on existing home sales as well as gains in financial and energy shares offset weaker-than-expected earnings from the likes of Coca-Cola and Intel. The Dow and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose about 0.2 percent while the S&P 500 inched up 0.1 percent.
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Market Analysis
May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.