The New Zealand sharemarket continued to climb on Wednesday.
The benchmark index rose 27.2 points, or 1%, to close at 2900 on turnover of $83 million.
Top stocks were mixed. Telecom was up 6 cents $2.83, Contact Energy rose 5c to $6.08 but Fletcher Building fell 14c to $6.90.
Sky City Entertainment jumped a further 11c to $3.16, while Air New Zealand remained unchanged at 95c.
The Australian share market closed in positive territory for the seventh consecutive session, driven by gains in mining and energy stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 17.8 points, or 0.44%, at 4,068.5 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index gained 20.6 points, or 0.51%, to 4,068.9 points.
Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.7% to hit its highest in more than two weeks on Wednesday as technical buying boosted futures prices.
The benchmark Nikkei gained 71.14 points to 9,723.16, its highest since 3 July. It rose for a sixth straight day - its best performance in nearly seven months.
The broader Topix advanced 0.6% to 906.58.
Hong Kong share prices closed 1.30% down on Wednesday, as investors took profits following six days of rises, dealers said.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed down 253.56 points at 19,248.17.
