Asian stocks rise

Asia-Pacific shares were mixed by the close on Tuesday even as vaccine hopes once again lifted Wall Street to record highs. Airline stocks in the region got a boost.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.42% to close at 26,014.62, after touching a 52-week high on Monday. The Topix edged up 0.16% to 1,734.66.

Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.21% to close at 6,498.20. The bourse resumed trading on Tuesday after a nearly full-day trading halt Monday that it said was due to a software issue which created “inaccurate market data.”

Mainland Chinese stocks were subdued. The Shanghai composite edged down 0.21% to close at 3,339.90, while the Shenzhen component declined 0.85% to 13,732.52.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was above the flatline in the afternoon.

South Korea’s Kospi edged down 0.15% to 2,539.15.

Over in Singapore, the Straits Times index jumped nearly 1% in the afternoon. The country reported non-oil domestic exports that were far off expectations, falling 3.1% year-on-year, as compared to forecasts of a 5.7% rise.

Overall, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was almost flat.