TOKYO – Asian shares rose Wednesday after Wall Street extended its gains for a third straight day, driven by optimism over economies reopening from shutdowns to stem the coronavirus pandemic.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 1.3% to finish at 22,613.76. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.8% to 5,941.60. South Korea's Kospi surged 2.7% to 2,143.45.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 1.3% at 24,315.99, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.2% to 2,926.59. “The theme of reopening optimism has its stronghold on markets going into the midweek, one to likewise inspire Asia markets gains despite the series of ongoing concerns,” said Jingyi Pan, market strategist for IG in Singapore.