| Asian stocks followed Wall Street higher on Wednesday, with Japanese and South Korean shares rallying to record highs on strength in technology stocks.
Investors also reacted to U.S. President Donald Trump's comments in the annual address before a joint session of Congress that most of the U.S. trading partners "want to keep the deal that they already made" with his administration and that tariffs will replace income tax as time goes by.
The dollar was broadly lower in Asian trade, helping gold prices surge toward $5,200 an ounce. Oil edged higher to hover near seven-month highs on concerns over a potential military conflict between the United States and Iran.
China's Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.72 percent to 4,147.23 as Shanghai eased homebuying rules in the latest attempt by authorities to contain the nation's prolonged property slump. Hong Kong' Hang Seng index rose 0.66 percent to 26,765.72. |