ASIA STOCKS gain as U.S. passes debt-limit deal

Asian equity markets rose Thursday after Washington lawmakers voted to reopen the U.S. government and raise the debt ceiling.

U.S. President Barack Obama signed the legislation passed by Congress late Wednesday to restore federal operations, fund the government through Jan. 15, and to raise the debt limit until Feb. 7. 

Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average and the broader Topix index each rose 0.6%, but were off session highs. 

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.2%, and the Shanghai Composite Index tacked on 0.5%. South Korea’s Kospi picked up 0.4%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.4% higher.

Among the advancers, shares of Fujitsu Ltd. topped advancers as they tacked on 5.5%, and Mazda Motor Corp. rose 2.3%.

Also higher were shares of Kansai Electric Power Co., rising 2.2% after the utility swung to a first-half pretax profit of 31 billion yen ($314 million).

Hong Kong advancers included ZTE Corp., which traded 4.8% higher.

Stock in China Mobile Ltd. rose 0.2%.

Finance shares, however, turned lower, with China’s central bank ready to take out 44.5 billion yuan ($7.3 billion) from the banking system this week though regular open-market operations. Shares of Bank of China Ltd. lost 0.8%, while Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. also fell 0.8%.

In Sydney, shares of Newcrest Mining Ltd. underperformed the broader market, falling 0.6% after the gold producer said it faces about 120 million Australian dollars ($115 million) in extra tax charges this fiscal year.

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