BANGKOK (AP) — Deals by cash–rich corporations and strong earnings out of the U.S. helped propel Asian markets mostly higher Wednesday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.5 percent to 9,868.20 amid a weakening yen, which makes products by the country’s powerhouse export sector more attractive to overseas customers. Honda (News – Alert) Motor Co. Ltd. jumped 2.3 percent, Sharp Corp. rose 1.5 percent and Canon Inc. was 0.3 percent higher.
Toyota Motor Corp. rose 1.3 percent a day after reports said the company, whose operations were disrupted by parts shortages after Japan’s March 11 earthquake and tsunami, would likely return to normal two to three months earlier than expected.
South Korea’s Kospi index was 0.6 percent higher at 2,152.75, with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., South Korea’s No. 2 shipbuilder, jumping 4.5 percent after announcing it had won a deal to build a drill ship for Vantage Drilling, Yonhap news agency reported. The value of the contract was not revealed.
Australia’s S&P ASX 200 rose 0.7 percent to 4,760.80, with benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and New Zealand also higher.
Chinese markets were down after the country’s national statistics bureau released higher–than–forecasted inflation figures. The official Xinhua News Agency said consumer prices rose 5.3 percent over a year ago, driven by an 11.5 percent jump in April food costs.
Persistently high inflation has led the People’s Bank of China to hike interest rates and take other measures to reduce the amount of money sloshing around the economy. The latest inflation figures could put additional pressure on the central bank to keep controls on lending and liquidity — resulting in less money to put into stocks.
The mainland Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.6 percent to 2,874.56 and the smaller Shenzhen Composite Index lost 0.4 percent to 1,205.17. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index was 0.2 percent lower to 23,288.45.
On Wall Street, news that Microsoft Inc. said it would buy Internet telephone service Skype (News 
– Alert) for $8.5 billion in cash stood a sign that companies were starting to spend — buoying confidence that stocks would continue to rise.
The Skype purchase would be Microsoft’s largest in its 36–year history. It follows AT&T (News – Alert) Inc.’s announcement in March that it would buy T–Mobile USA for $39 billion and Johnson & Johnson’s $21.3 billion deal announced last month to acquire Synthes, a maker of medical instruments and implants.
Also Tuesday, dairy producer Dean Foods Co. was among companies reporting earnings that beat analysts’ expectations. Dean had a stronger start to the year than it expected and raised its forecast for full–year earnings.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.6 percent to close at 12,760.36. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 0.8 percent to 1,357.16. The Nasdaq composite index gained 1 percent to 2,871.89.
Benchmark crude for June delivery dropped 22 cents to $103.66 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract settled at $103.88 per barrel on the Nymex on Tuesday.
The euro was slightly up at $1.4390 from $1.4388 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar traded at 80.88 yen, up from 80.78 yen.
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