06:36 AM EDT, 05/08/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets largely gained on Thursday after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady as expected, and after Beijing again announced support for the nation's economy.

Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo finished in the green, while other regional exchanges were mixed.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened evenly but rose to the close, finishing up 0.4% as investors weighed reports about possibly easing global trade tensions.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 148.97 to 36,928.63, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 121 to 99.

Leading the upside was telecom giant NTT Data, up 16.7% after disclosing a corporate reorganization, while game maker Bandai Namco declined 8.2%.

In economic news, the Japan composite purchasing managers index (PMI), a combination of the nation's manufacturing and services sectors, logged at 51.2 in April, up from 48.9 in March, and striking above the 50-mark that separates growth from contraction, reported S&P Global.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened evenly and gained ground, finishing up 0.4% following a statement by China's Vice-Minister of Justice Wang Zhenjiang, that Beijing has codified for the first time the legal status of the private sector, and the government's respect and support for that sector, reported the South China Morning Post.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 84.04 to 22,775.92, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 43 to 38. The Hang Seng TECH Index gained 0.6% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 0.5%.

Leading the upside was Li Auto, gaining 5%, while noodle maker Tingyi declined 4.6%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.3% % to 3,352.00.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI rose 0.2%; the Taiwan TWSE was steady; the Australian ASX 200 rose 0.2%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 0.5%, and the Thai Set declined 1.1%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.5%.

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