Asian stocks boosted as Japanese inflation hits five year high

Asian stocks rose overnight, leaving the region on track for its best monthly run since 2010, as positive inflation data from Japan cheered investors.

Japanese consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 0.8% in August, beating forecasts after recording its biggest rise since 2008. The news failed to lift Japanese shares, with the Nikkei down 0.3%, but the region as a whole was firmer. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.7%, with many other individual countries also seeing indices close higher. September gains have pushed valuations on Asia-Pacific stocks to 13.7 times estimated earnings yesterday, from 12.7 times at the end of August, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. A number of indices are up sharply this month, including J...