Asian shares rise after Wall Street gains on solid earnings

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Wednesday, cheered by the gains on Wall Street as investors welcomed a batch of solid earnings reports from U.S. companies.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.3% to 23,647.63. South Korea's Kospi added 0.3% to 2,366.15, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.1% to 66,191.80. Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 0.7% to 24,750.04. The Shanghai Composite slipped 0.5% to 3,312.28.

India's Sensex added 0.6% to 40,767.14. Shares rose in Taiwan and Singapore but fell in Jakarta.

Asian shares have tracked moves on Wall Street lately, as much of the region's export-dependent economies depend on robust trade, slammed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Investors also had their eye on Washington in hopes that Democrats and Republicans will reach a deal to deliver more aid for the economy.

“Markets have been cheered by hopes of a fiscal stimulus deal between Republicans and Democrats even as the Tuesday deadline loomed as all sides expressed goodwill as well as flexibility in the timeline to reach a compromise deal sooner rather than later,” Mizuho Bank said in its daily markets report.

Technology, communication and financial stocks powered most of the gains on Wall Street. Traders bid up shares in several companies that reported quarterly results that were better than analysts expected, including Procter & Gamble, Regions Financial, Albertsons and Travelers.

Others didn't fare as well. Netflix shares fell in after-hours trading after the streaming service reported third-quarter earnings and a tally of new subscribers that fell short of analysts' expectations.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 3,443.12. The Dow Jones Industrial Average of big blue chips gained 0.4% to 28,308.79. The Nasdaq composite snapped a five-day losing streak, rising...