Asia stocks rally on Spanish bank bailout; Nikkei jumps 2%

Investing.com - Asian stock markets posted sharp gains on Monday, as market sentiment improved after Spain sought a bailout for its troubled banking sector over the weekend.

Appetite for riskier assets found further support after data over the weekend showed China's exports jumped in May from a year earlier, while imports also rose more-than-expected.

During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged 2.4%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index jumped 2%, while Australia’s ASX/200 Index remained closed for a public holiday.

Spain became the fourth euro-zone country to require international financial assistance on Saturday, as Finance Minister Luis de Guindos said the country will ask the European Union for as much as EUR100 billion in loans to help its struggling banking sector.

Concerns about Spain’s banks have grown since Bankia, the country’s fourth-largest lender, said last month it needed EUR19 billion in state aid to shore itself up against bad loans.

Meanwhile, the Customs General Administration of China said the nation’s trade surplus widened to USD18.70 billion in May from USD18.40 in the previous month.

The report said that exports jumped by 15.3% in May from a year earlier, easily surpassing expectations for growth of 7.1% and accelerating from 4.9% in April.

Imports rose by 12.7%, beating expectations of 5.5% and growing sharply from 0.3% in the previous month.  

In Tokyo, the Nikkei surged on the back of strong gains in exporters with high exposure to Europe and China.

Shares in digital camera maker Canon jumped 3.5%, Sony rose 3.15%, Mazda gained 3%, while heavy equipment makers Fanuc and Komatsu increased 2.1% and 3.8% respectively.

Electronics maker Sharp soared 8.15% after the company announced it will cooperate with Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry in the smart phone business in China.

Japanese financial names were higher as well, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group gaining 1.15% and Nomura Holdings adding 1.1%

Meanwhile, shares in Hong Kong rallied, led higher by lenders and energy firms. Shares in index heavyweight HSBC, which commands a 15% weighting on the Hong Kong benchmark, rose 2.9% on the Spain bailout news.

Shares in oil giants PetroChina and CNOOC climbed 3.35% and 3.4% respectively, tracking a sharp rise in oil prices.

The positive trade data out of China helped its shipping sector post solid gains. China COSCO Holdings surged 11.6%, COSCO Pacific Limited shares rallied 6.8%, while listed China Shipping Container Lines jumped 11.5%.

Looking ahead, the outlook for European stock markets was sharply higher, after the European Union agreed to lend Spain as much as EUR100 billion to bailout its banks, easing concerns over an escalation of the sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone.

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The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 2%, France’s CAC 40 futures rose 1.45%, London’s FTSE 100 futures advanced 1%, while Germany's DAX futures pointed to a gain of 1.6% at the open.

Later in the day, France was to publish official data on industrial production, while Italy was to announce the details of an auction of government bonds.