CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian shares rallied on Thursday as upbeat manufacturing data from China, Germany and the U.S. bolstered the outlook for global economic growth. Adding to optimism over Greece, reports said the Greek bond holders would be offered GDP-linked warrants that would boost yields to sweeten debt restructuring if Greece's gross domestic product exceeds targets. Metal prices pared overnight gains and crude futures were little changed as the euro steadied against the dollar. Tokyo shares advanced led by automotive and bank shares. The Nikkei average finished the day 0.8 percent higher while the broader Topix index rose 0.6 percent. Automakers saw brisk buying, with Toyota Motor and Honda Motor gaining around 2 percent each. Nomura Holdings soared 7.1 percent after the brokerage reported a surprising 33 percent gain in net profit in the October to December period, helped largely by one-off gains. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group gained 2.5 percent after the company reported a surge in its nine-month net income to 815.80 billion yen from last year's 551.83 billion yen. Sharp plunged 16 percent to a 31-year low after the maker of LCD panels said it expects to post its biggest-ever net loss for the current fiscal year. Likewise, Sumco, the maker of silicon wafers for semiconductors, slumped 15 percent on a Nikkei report that it plans to cut about 1,000 jobs and is considering raising around Y50 billion in new capital. Meanwhile, the Tokyo Stock Exchange said it is investigating the cause of the glitch that led to the suspension of trading of 241 companies in the morning. Trading volumes totaled 2.25 billion shares on the exchange, the third-highest figure for the year, as market participants rushed to execute their shares in the afternoon session after trading resumed. Australian shares snapped a three-day losing streak following positive leads from both Wall Street and Europe overnight. Miners led the rebound as encouraging manufacturing data from across the globe soothed worries that Europe's debt crisis could derail the economic recovery. Both the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 and the broader All Ordinaries index closed up around a percent each. BHP Billiton finished the day up nearly 2 percent after the mining giant approved initial spending on a A$14 billion expansion of its iron ore export facility at Port Hedland. Rival Rio Tinto rallied 2.9 percent, Fortescue edged up 0.6 percent and gold miner Newcrest added 1.3 percent. Miners also benefited from reports that Swiss commodity trader Glencore International is nearing an agreement to combine with Xstrata. The speculation was confirmed subsequently by the companies. Lynas Corp soared 19.1 percent after Malaysia's Atomic Energy Licensing Board granted the rare earths miner a temporary license to operate a refinery in the country. Building-products maker James Hardie soared 4.2 percent and Boral rallied 3.8 percent after data showed construction spending in the U.S. rose 1.5 percent in December. Retailer Wesfarmer rose a modest 0.6 percent after the conglomerate reported a 6.7 percent rise in second-quarter sales at its Coles supermarket chain. Rival Woolworths edged down 0.4 percent and David Jones lost 2.3 percent. South Korea's Kospi average rose 1.3 percent, gaining for a third day, after an uptick in world's factory output buoyed optimism that the world economy could withstand the fallout from Europe's debt crisis. LG Electronics soared 7.4 percent, extending gains for the ninth consecutive session, after the company's handset business posted its first profit in seven quarters. Oil refiner SK Innovation gained 3.2 percent, flagship carrier Korean Airline rallied 4.3 percent and builder Hyundai Engineering & Construction jumped 5.3 percent. New Zealand shares joined a global rally on signs of an improving U.S. economy. The benchmark NZX -50 index closed 0.4 percent higher. Whiteware manufacturer Fisher & Paykel Appliances climbed 8.5 percent even as the kiwi dollar rose to a fresh five-month high on optimism about the global economic outlook. Tapware manufacturer Methven jumped 5.8 percent and Skellerup Holdings, the maker of rubber goods and milking equipment, rallied 3.7 percent while Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, which derives more than half of its revenue in U.S. dollars, lost 0.9 percent. Retailers closed on a mixed note, with the Warehouse Group rising 0.7 percent, while Hallenstein Glasson and Pumpkin Patch lost ground. Elsewhere, China's Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose around 2 percent each, India's Sensex was up 0.9 percent, Indonesia's Jakarta Composite gained 1.3 percent and the Taiwan Weighted average added 1.4 percent, but Singapore's Straits Times edged down marginally. The major U.S. averages rose between 0.7 percent and 1.2 percent overnight after a string of economic data showed U.S. manufacturing grew at the fastest pace since June in January, construction spending reached a four-month high in December and employment in the private sector improved at a moderate pace last month.
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