Shippers and exporters lead Nikkei 225

Asian equities markets received a boost from the Bank of Japan’s surprise action to add Y10tn ($126bn) to its stimulus package on Wednesday.

The Nikkei 225 rose 1.2 per cent to 9,232.21, a four-month high, helped by export stocks which rose as the yen eased on news of the stimulus. The Japanese currency touched a month-low of Y79.23 to the dollar after news of the policy move.

The rosier outlook for international trade helped shipping companies top Tokyo’s main benchmark. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha made the best single gain with a 12 per cent rally to Y114. Its peer Mitsui OSK Lines was in second place, up 6.9 per cent at Y217.

Mazda Motor was 5.1 per cent higher at Y104, while component maker TDK was 5 per cent higher at Y3,240.

Traders were also encouraged by signs of easing tensions between China and Japan over a territorial dispute centred on a group of islands in the East China Sea known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China. Having closed outlets on the mainland after a series of angry anti-Japanese protests, Fast Retailing reopened its Chinese branches. Its shares rose 3.3 per cent to Y18,500, making up some of the 7 per cent lost over the previous session at the height of the demonstrations.

In the wider region, risk appetite improved after the BoJ’s move. Seoul’s Kospi was 0.2 per cent higher at 2,007.98, while the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney rose 0.5 per cent to 4,418.36.

There were bigger gains in China on hopes that Tokyo’s actions could prompt Beijing to ease monetary policy faster, after it adopted what traders view as a wait-and-see approach after the Federal Reserve’s QE3 and the eurozone’s unlimited bond-buying scheme.

The Shanghai Composite was 0.4 per cent higher at 2,067.83, while the Shenzhen Composite rose 0.7 per cent to 865.73. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was 1.2 per cent at 20,841.91.

“Japan’s announcement certainly seems like it was the catalyst market participants were looking for and has ignited sentiment in the Asian session,” said Stan Shamu strategist at IG Markets.

“The move is another effort to prevent a rising yen from undermining an economic recovery.”