Japan's Nikkei 225 rises nearly 2%; multiple Asia markets remain closed for Lunar New Year holidays

SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific rose in Wednesday trade, with multiple major markets in Asia remaining closed for the Lunar New Year holidays.

The Nikkei 225 gained 1.73% in morning trade while the Topix index advanced 1.97%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 1.1%.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.29% higher.

Markets in mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea are closed on Wednesday for the Lunar New Year holidays.

Overnight stateside, shares on Wall Street rose for a third day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 273.38 points to 35,405.24 while the S&P 500 climbed 0.69% to 4,546.54. The Nasdaq Composite edged 0.75% higher to 14,346.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 96.238 after falling from above 97 earlier in the week.

The Japanese yen traded at 114.73 per dollar, stronger than levels above 115.2 seen against the greenback earlier this week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7138 following its rise from levels below $0.702 earlier in the trading week.

Oil prices were higher in the morning of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 0.43% to $89.54 per barrel. U.S. crude futures gained 0.41% to $88.56 per barrel.