CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are mostly higher on Thursday, following the positive cues overnight from Wall Street as the markets benefited from a positive reaction to the latest news about Greece as well as some upbeat U.S. economic data.
However, investors are treading cautiously ahead of the release of the U.S. Labor Department's monthly jobs report later in the day, which is being released a day earlier than usual due to the July 4 holiday.
The Australian market advanced, led by gains in banks and retail stocks. Meanwhile, gold miners and oil stocks were lower following the decline in their respective commodity prices overnight.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index is adding 41.90 points or 0.76 percent to 5,557.60, off a high of 5,559.20 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 40.40 points or 0.73 percent to 5,546.40.
Among the big four banks, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac (WBK) and National Australia Bank are higher in a range of 0.7 percent to more than 1 percent. Macquarie Group is advancing 0.8 percent.
Among retailers, Myer Holdings is adding more than 2 percent and JB Hi Fi is up almost 1 percent. James Hardie Industries is also higher by more than 2 percent.
Clothing retailer Pacific Brands raised its full-year earnings outlook, citing cost cutting efforts and strong sales growth from its core brands. Shares of the company are gaining more than 30 percent.
In the mining space, BHP Billiton (BHP) is adding 0.5 percent and Fortescue Metals is advancing almost 2 percent, while Rio Tinto (RIO) is down 0.2 percent.
Meanwhile, gold miner Newcrest Mining is down 0.2 percent and Evolution Mining is losing 0.4 percent after gold prices fell overnight.
In the oil sector, Oil Search is down 0.8 percent and Woodside Petroleum is losing 0.3 percent, while Santos is adding 0.2 percent after crude oil prices fell overnight.
Outdoor clothing and equipment retailer Kathmandu Holdings has urged shareholders to take no action on a takeover offer from New Zealand-based retailer Briscoe Group pending the board's response, and has retained Goldman Sachs as an adviser. Shares of Kathmandu Holdings are down almost 1 percent.
Sandalwood plantation operator TFS Corp. reiterated its earnings outlook for fiscal 2014/15. However, the company's shares are declining almost 2 percent.
On the economic front, Australia posted a seasonally adjusted merchandise trade deficit of A$2.751 billion in May, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday. That missed forecasts for a shortfall of A$2.225 billion following the downwardly revised A$4.136 billion deficit in April.
Exports were up 1.0 percent on month or A$206 million to A$25.528 billion, while imports sank 4.0 percent on month or A$1.179 billion to A$28.279 billion.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar is weaker against the U.S. dollar on Thursday after the greenback rose following strong US economic data. In early trades, the local unit was trading at US$0.7644, down from Wednesday's close of US$0.7716.
The Japanese market opened higher, extending gains from the previous session following the positive lead overnight from Wall Street. Additionally, a weaker yen boosted exporters' stocks.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 233.16 points or 1.15 percent to 20,562.48, off a high of 20,601.73 earlier.
Among the major exporters, Sony Corp. (SNE) is up 0.8 percent, Sharp is adding more than 3 percent, Nikon is advancing 0.6 percent and Panasonic is higher by more than 1 percent. Meanwhile, Toshiba is edging down 0.05 percent.
In the tech sector, Casio Computer is adding 0.4 percent, Fanuc is advancing 0.5 percent, and Kyocera is gaining more than 1 percent.
Among auto stocks, Toyota is higher by 0.5 percent and Suzuki is edging up 0.02 percent, while Honda (HMC) and Mazda are gaining more than 2 percent each.
In the banking space, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (MTU) is adding 1 percent, Mizuho Financial (MFG) is up 0.8 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is advancing more than 1 percent.
Among the other major gainers, Fast Retailing and Sony Financial Holdings are gaining almost 3 percent each, while Obayashi Corp. is adding almost 2 percent. Japan Tobacco and Sumitomo Heavy Industries are declining more than 1 percent each.
On the economic front, the Bank of Japan said that the monetary base in Japan surged 34.2 percent on year in June, coming in at 325.047 trillion yen. That follows the 35.6 percent spike in May.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 123 yen-range on Thursday, up from Wednesday's close in the upper 122 yen-range in Tokyo.
Among the other Asian markets, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan are also in positive territory. Meanwhile, Shanghai is down more than 1 percent and Hong Kong is marginally lower.
On Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Wednesday as the markets benefited from a positive reaction to the latest news about Greece as well as some upbeat U.S. economic data.
While Greece failed to make a 1.6 billion euro payment to the International Monetary Fund, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras sent a letter indicating he will accept most of the demands made by the country's creditors.
The Dow advanced 138.40 points or 0.8 percent to 17,757.91, the Nasdaq rose 26.26 points or 0.5 percent to 5,013.12 and the S&P 500 climbed 14.31 points or 0.7 percent to 2,077.42.
The major European markets all moved sharply higher on Wednesday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index surged up by 1.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index soared by 1.9 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively.
U.S. crude oil plummeted to end at a more than two-month low on Wednesday, after a weekly official oil report from the Energy Information Administration showed U.S. inventories to have increased more than expected last week, even as reports indicate the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to have exceeded its output target for June.
Crude Oil futures for August delivery, the most actively traded contract, plunged $2.51 or 4.2 percent to settle at $56.96 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Wednesday.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX