Barefoot Investor: Asia Ends Up on US Debt Talks, Tech Results

Asian shares rose on Wednesday as indications of progress on a U.S. budget-reduction deal boosted investor confidence while encouraging quarterly numbers from Apple and International Business Machines helped Asia's beaten-down tech sector gain for a second day.

The FTSE CNBC Asia 100 Index [.FTFCNBCA  6778.87    94.28  (+1.41%)], which measures markets across Asia, jumped 1.3 percent.

Tokyo stocks marked their biggest daily rise in three weeks to close above 10,000, boosted by a rally in tech shares after strong earnings from Apple [AAPL  376.85    3.05  (+0.82%)   ], with more gains in sight as Japan heads into its earnings season.

Among companies benefiting from the Apple euphoria, Toshiba, a maker of NAND flash memories, rose 2.7 percent and Foster Electric, which makes headphones for smartphones, jumped to a one-week high in heavy volume, gaining 1.7 percent.

Factory automation stocks outperformed after industrial robot maker Yaskawa Electric's solid earnings for the April-June quarter lifted sentiment. Yaskawa added 0.3 percent, Fanuc jumped 3.9 percent and THK surged 2.6 percent.

The benchmark Nikkei average [.N225  10005.90    116.18  (+1.17%)   ] closed up 1.2 percent at 10,005.90, jumping the most since June 29, while the broader Topix gained 0.8 percent to 860.66.

Seoul shares snapped a two-session losing streak on eased U.S. debt jitters, led by tech shares after Apple and IBM [IBM  185.21    9.93  (+5.67%)   ] announced forecast-beating quarterly results.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) [.KS11  2154.95    24.74  (+1.16%)] closed up 1.16 percent at 2,154.95 points.

Tech shares rallied after Apple's staggering earnings triggered expectations of higher demand for components and offered a glimmer of hope for the sector. Flat-panel producer LG Display jumped 4.8 percent and battery maker Samsung SDI rose 7.1 percent, while shares in chipmaker Samsung Electronics gained 3.5 percent.

SK Communications jumped as much as 7 percent on expectations of a merger with a spinoff of its parent firm SK Telecom before closing 1.2 percent lower.

Australia Shares Post Biggest 1-Day Gain in 8 Months
Australian shares jumped 1.8 percent, the biggest one-day percentage rally since early December, as banks and miners led a broad rebound, encouraged by strong U.S. corporate results and easing concerns over U.S. debt obligations.

National Australia Bank bounced 2.6 percent while BHP Billiton boosted the market with a 1.9 percent rise after a faster-than-expected recovery in metallurgical coal production. (CNBC Asia)

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