Investing.com - Asian stock markets rallied on Thursday, as upbeat Chinese manufacturing data suggested that growth is stabilizing in the region’s largest economy.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.65%, China’s Shanghai Composite advanced 0.23%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 1.02% higher, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended up 2.11%.
Midway through the session, data showed that China’s HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index, the earliest indicator of the country's industrial activity, rose to a five-month high of 49.7 in May from a final reading of 48.1 in April.
Sentiment was also boosted as Asia was given a positive lead from the U.S., where markets ended higher following the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s April policy meeting.
The minutes reiterated that rates are likely to remain on hold at record lows for some time after its asset purchase program ends.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei ended higher as traders continued to monitor movements in the currency market. The yen weakened against the dollar, trading at ¥101.75, compared to the previous session’s three-and-a-half month high of ¥100.81 (USD/JPY).
Automakers Toyota (TOKYO:7203) and Mazda (TOKYO:7261) saw shares rise 2% and 3.9% respectively, while Fast Retailing (TOKYO:9983) and Fanuc (TOKYO:6954) advanced 3.5% and 1.2%.
Meanwhile, in Australia, the ASX/200 Index rose 1% as the Australian dollar rebounded from the previous day’s three-week low against the greenback.
The Aussie (AUD/USD) strengthened to 92.72 U.S. cents from 92.07 in the prior session.
James Hardie Industries (ASX:JHX) surged 5.7% after the construction-material firm posted a sharp increase in its annual profit and announced both a special dividend and an additional share buyback.
Elsewhere, shares in mainland China and Hong Kong edged higher as investors cheered better than expected Chinese manufacturing data.
China Gas Holdings (HK:0384) rallied 7.6% after China signed a multi-billion-dollar natural gas deal with Russia’s Gazprom on Wednesday.
Looking ahead, European stock market futures pointed to a higher open ahead of the release of key data on manufacturing and services sector activity.
The Euro Stoxx 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.25%, France’s CAC 40 futures inched up 0.25%, London’s FTSE 100 indicated a rise of 0.25%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to an increase of 0.3% at the open.
Across the Atlantic, U.S. equity markets also pointed to a firm open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a gain of 0.15%, the S&P 500 added 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 indicated a rise of 0.2%.
The U.S. is to release its weekly report on initial jobless claims and private sector data on existing home sales.