Stocks buoyed by US manufacturing report

Asian stocks rose today, lifted by a positive report on US manufacturing, but shares in Japan sank as a strengthening yen hurt the country's powerhouse export sector.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.5% to 20,634.58, South Korea's Kospi added 0.9% to 2,047.14 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.3% to 4,343.20.