Asia-Pacific markets open higher with Hong Kong and Australia data in focus

Asia-Pacific markets rose Thursday morning as Japan’s Topix crossed its all-time high of 2,886.50, previously set in December 1989.

The Topix jumped 0.56% in early morning trading, while the Nikkei 225 rose 0.55%. The Nikkei is less than 150 points from its all-time high of 40,888.43.

Investors will assess data due Thursday, including Hong Kong business activity and Australian trade numbers.

Australia’s trade surplus is expected to narrow to 6.3 billion Australian dollars ($4.23 billion) from about AU$ 6.5 billion.

South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.98%, while the Kosdaq was up 0.75%

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.08%.

Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 18,012, higher than the HSI’s last close of 17,978.57.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 added 0.51%, closing at 5,537.02. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.88% to end at 18,188.30 as tech giants like Tesla and Nvidia rallied.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.06% to end at 39,308, weighed down by a drop in UnitedHealth.

—CNBC’s Alex Harring and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.