Asia stocks mixed on Greece fears; Nikkei up 0.8% on GDP data

Investing.com - Asian stock markets were mixed to higher on Thursday, as fears over the possibility of a Greek exit from the euro zone lingered, while better-than-expected first quarter growth figures boosted shares in Japan.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.7%, Australia’s ASX/200 Index shed 0.2%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index added 0.8%.

Global equities have been rattled since the uncertain outcome of the May 6 elections in Greece, which threw the future of the country’s international bailout deal into doubt and fuelled fears over a possible Greek exit from the euro zone.

Most Asian markets rebounded on Thursday, a day after recording their worst one-day loss since the start of the year, as investors returned to the market to seek cheap valuations.

Despite the day’s gains, market sentiment was set to remain fragile as the debt-laden country called for new elections to take place on June 17. The vote will likely determine whether the highly indebted country remains in the single currency area.

Fears over the health of the country’s banking sector will also likely keep sentiment on the back foot, after reports surfaced Wednesday that the European Central Bank had stopped providing liquidity to some Greek banks as they have not been successfully recapitalized.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng recovered from a four-month low and its worst one-day drop in six months, as investors returned to the market after entering technically oversold territory.

Shares in Chinese online giant Tencent Holdings rose 3.65% after reporting first-quarter net profit rose 2.8% to CNY2.95 billion, driven by a 49% increase in online games revenue.

Gains in beaten-up raw material producers also provided support, with oil giants CNOOC and PetroChina rising 2.25% and 1% respectively, while gold producer Zijin Mining Group advanced 3%.

Meanwhile, in Japan, the Nikkei was boosted after official data showed that the country’s economy expanded by 1.0% in the first three months of 2012, beating expectations for a 0.9% increase.

On an annualized basis, the country’s gross domestic product rose 4.1% in the first quarter, above forecasts for growth of 3.5%, as investment linked to rebuilding of its disaster-struck regions boosted economic activity.

Shares in Japanese steel makers higher on the news, with JFE Holdings surging 5.45%, Nippon Steel advancing 3.9% and Kobe Steel climbing 3.1%.

Japanese exporters saw some buying, after coming under heavy selling pressure in recent days. Shares in Mazda, the Japanese carmaker with the highest proportion of European sales, jumped 3.8%, Honda rose 2.3%, while Nippon Sheet Glass, which gets almost 40% of its sales in Europe, added 3.35%.

The Nikkei rallied more than 19% in the first three months of the year, buoyed in large part by an unexpected easing announcement by the BoJ in February, but the index has fallen nearly 13% from this year’s high on March 27 as China’s economic growth slowed and on renewed concern about Europe’s debt crisis.

Elsewhere, shares in Australia underperformed the region, losing most of its gains in afternoon trade as shares in banking heavyweight Commonwealth Bank of Australia came under selling pressure.

The lender lost 1.6% after saying adjusted third quarter profit grew 3%, below market expectations.

The news weighed on other shares in the sector, Westpac Banking Group slumping 2.15% and National Australia Bank dipping 0.35%.

Looking ahead, the outlook for European stock markets was mildly higher, though remained vulnerable to a downside move amid concerns that a potential Greek exit from the euro zone would put further pressure on the bloc’s other members.

The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.2%, France’s CAC 40 futures added 0.2%, London’s FTSE 100 futures eased up 0.15%, while Germany's DAX futures rose 0.35%.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce government data on unemployment claims, followed by a report on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia area.