Asian stocks up

Asian stocks rose on Wednesday following a rally on Wall Street as dealers welcomed a better-than-expected jump in US consumer confidence to a six-year high, while there was muted response to a missile test by North Korea. Tokyo added 0.23 percent by the break, supported by investors picking up stocks to lock in dividends before the new tax year starts in April. Hong Kong jumped 1.11 percent, Sydney advanced 1.03 percent, Shanghai was up 0.15 percent and Seoul gained 1.00 percent. Earlier, the three main indexes in New York enjoyed a rally on Tuesday, capping a two-session losing streak, after a closely watched confidence survey showed confidence among American consumers surging. The Conference Board’s index for March confidence came in at 82.3 – its highest since January 2008 – from 78.3 in February and far better than the 78.9 expected. Asian traders seemed unmoved by news that North Korea test-fired two medium-range missiles early Wednesday, as US President Barack Obama hosted a landmark Japan-South Korea summit. South Korea’s defence ministry said the missiles flew 650 kilometres (400 miles) into the Sea of Japan (East Sea), upping the ante after a series of short-range missile and rocket launches by the North in recent weeks. However, while Washington condemned the tests as “troubling and provocative”, regional markets maintained their uptrend, according to AFP.