Major Asian markets exhibited positive cues today, with the exception of Japan’s Nikkei. South Korea’s Kospi index rose 1.55 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.57 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite gained 0.47 percent, and Singapore’s Straits Times Index advanced 0.44 percent. However, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed with a loss of 0.44 percent.

Major European indices were trading higher in the intra-day trade.  London’s FTSE 100 jumped pver 1.1 per cent, France’s CAC  rose 0.58 per cent and Germany’s DAX added 0.1, when reports last came in.