Asia stocks broadly higher on Greece worries; Nikkei up 0.6%

Investing.com - Asian stock markets were broadly higher on Monday, as market sentiment improved after Greece’s parliament approved austerity measures needed to secure a bailout and avert a sovereign debt default.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.65%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index added 0.95%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.6%.

The Greek parliament approved on Sunday a set of spending and wage cuts needed to secure the country’s EUR130 billion bailout package and avoid a sovereign debt default.

Attention now shifts to a meeting Wednesday of euro zone finance ministers, who will discuss the approval of Greece’s second bailout before a March 20 deadline.

Shares in Japanese exporters with high exposure to Europe boosted the Nikkei. Mazda, which gets nearly 18% of its revenue from Europe climbed 1.4%, while Nippon Sheet Glass, which counts Europe as its biggest market added 1.5%.  

Telecommunications firm Softbank jumped 3.5% after the Nikkei Newspaper reported that the firm was likely to win new spectrum that four mobile operators are competing for.

Industrial robot maker Fanuc rose 2.25% after a report the company plans to build a new factory near Tokyo to double its domestic output capacity of machine tools that produce smartphone parts by the end of the year.

Market participants mostly shrugged off data showing Japan’s economy contracted by a greater-than-expected 0.6% in the last three months of 2011.

Elsewhere, shares in the financial sector led gains in Hong Kong, as fears over a messy Greek default eased.    

China Construction Bank saw shares climb 1.6%, Bank of China shares added 1%, while insurance giant Ping An jumped 2.55%.

Hong Kong-based exporters with high exposure to Europe also contributed to gains. Shares in Esprit Holdings surged 3.6%, while Cosco Pacific, which operates ports in Greece, advanced 1.9%.

Chinese property developers came under selling pressure on news that the eastern Chinese city of Wuhu announced it was suspending plans it announced last week to subsidize some home purchases and give tax breaks to help support the local market.

China Overseas Land & Investment saw shares tumble 4.6%, Evergrande Real Estate Group plunged 6.65%, while Agile Property Holdings dropped 6.4%.

Looking ahead, the outlook for European stock markets was upbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.85%, France’s CAC 40 futures jumped 1.1%, London’s FTSE 100 futures rose 0.55%, while Germany's DAX futures added 0.8%.

Investors were also eyeing a slew of debt auctions later in the week by Italy, Spain and France, as the sales will be considered as a gauge of investor confidence in the euro zone high-yielding sovereign debts.

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