Asian stocks mixed to higher on hopes of BoJ easing; Nikkei up 0.48%

Investing.com - Asian stocks rose Tuesday on hopes the Bank of Japan will expand its monetary easing program

The Japanese monetary authority will announce its latest decision on interest rates and policy later in the day.

During Asian trading on Tuesday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 0.01%, Australia's S&P/ASX200 was up 0.28%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was up 0.48%.

Weak indicators released in Japan earlier fueled talk of monetary intervention.

Industrial production in Japan fell more than expected in September, preliminary data showed.

In a report, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said that industrial production contracted 4.1% in September from  a contraction of 1.6% in the preceding month.

Analysts had expected industrial production to shrink by 3.3% last month.
Household spending in Japan fell more than expected last month as well.

Japan's Statistics Bureau said that Japanese Household Spending shrank by 0.9% in September compared with expansion of 1.8% in the preceding month.

Analysts had expected Japanese Household Spending to grow by 0.7% last month.

Japan’s unemployment rate, meanwhile, remained unchanged in September at 4.2%, in line with expectations.

Markets were keeping an eye on the U.S., where Sandy, a former hurricane that morphed into a massive post-tropical super storm, roared ashore and closed a large chunk of the eastern seaboard, including U.S. markets.

In Hong Kong, top decliners included New World Development, down 2.15%, Sino Land, down 1.53%, and China Unicom, down 1.35%.

In Australia, top gainers included Virgin Australia Holdings, up 4.35%, Sigma Pharmaceuticals, up 3.88%,  and Pacific Brands, up 3.57%.

European stock futures indicated a lower opening.

France's CAC 40 futures pointed to a loss of 0.24%, while Germany's DAX 30 futures also pointed to a loss of 0.30%. Meanwhile in the U.K., FTSE 100 futures were down 0.04%.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.73%, while the S&P 500 futures were down 0.64%.

Later Tuesday, Spain is to release preliminary third-quarter gross domestic product rates.

The U.S. is to release data on consumer confidence, a leading indicator of economic health, as well as industry data on house price inflation, an important indicator of demand in the housing sector.