Asian markets shine, track US gains

Asian markets continued to hold in the positive zone backed by a smart rally in the US markets.

The Nikkei ended with a significant gain of 256 points at 17,419.

The Hang Seng has gained 238 points at 19,754, and the Shanghai index has rallied 36 points to 3094.

The Straits Times and Taiwan Weighted indices were up 66 points each at 3221 and 7824, respectively. The Seoul Composite index added six points to 1448.