RENEE MONTAGNE, Host: NPR's business news starts with a new year boost for Asian markets.</s>RENEE MONTAGNE, Host: Japan's Nikkei stock index was up two percent. Shares in Singapore and Hong Kong also traded higher, not necessarily because of excitement over the new year, which is the year of the rabbit. The hopping Asian stock is likely to the rise in U.S. stock prices yesterday.
Many Asian markets were closed Wednesday for the start of the Lunar New Year. The markets that were open ended on a positive note.