Asian Shares Edge Up on Wall Street High

A rise in U.S. stocks overnight, with the S&P 500 closing above 2000 for the first time, helped lift stocks across Asia early Wednesday.

The Nikkei Stock Average was up 0.4%, also buoyed by a slightly stronger dollar and gains in technology shares. Semiconductor firm Renesas Electronics Corp. advanced 2.3%, electronics giant Hitachi, Ltd. rose 1.2% and Internet and telecoms conglomerate SoftBank Corp. improved by 1.1%.

"Overall, investors keep buying the dollar," on the back of strength in the U.S. stock market and higher U.S. 10-year bond yields, said Akira Moroga, manager of forex products group at Aozora Bank. A stronger dollar-yen pair helps Japanese exporters and tends to boost stocks in Japan.

Still, with Japan's broader index having gained 5.0% in 10 out of the last 12 session, there are some expectations that the benchmark will mainly tread water Wednesday as investors take profits.

The dollar may also waver ahead of U.S. gross domestic product data scheduled for release Thursday. Mr. Moroga said he expects the greenback to remain in a Yen103.80-Yen104.30 range during trading in Asia. The dollar was last at Yen104.12, just a touch higher than Yen104.06 in New York late Tuesday.

Australia's S&P ASX 200 was up slightly by 0.1%, also aided by gains in the U.S., where stocks now have hit a series of records this year. Low interest rates and evidence of an economic recovery are fueling investor confidence.

Still, like Japan, Australia's market has also had a strong run recently, surging 4.7% in the past two weeks. Investors continue to look out for weaker iron-ore prices weighing on mining giants like BHP Billiton Ltd. That stock was up 0.2%, having fallen 6.2% since last Tuesday.

South Korea's Kospi was up 0.3%.

Laura He contributed to this article.

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