Asian stocks mostly up

Asian shares closed mostly up Wednesday, with Hong Kong jumping nearly two percent after strong results from China Mobile, but investors remained cautious about the slowing global economy.
The Hong Kong market ended 1.9 percent higher, buoyed by a 3.5 percent rise in China Mobile shares after the firm said net profit grew 45 percent during the first half of the year on strong subscriber growth and lower taxes.
Among other major markets, Taiwanese shares rose a little under 1.7 percent, while South Korea also ended in the black. The bourses in Australia and Singapore ended little changed.
But mainland Chinese stocks edged back, as investors continue to wait for confirmation of a rumoured economic stimulus package. The Japanese market, Asia's biggest, finished 0.2 percent lower.
Investors were generally cautious ahead of upcoming data, including US second-quarter economic growth on Thursday and Japanese consumer price inflation and industrial output on Friday.
US expansion has slowed in the wake of the financial crisis and credit crunch sparked by the meltdown in subprime, or higher risk, US mortgages.
Among smaller Asian markets Wednesday, Thailand rallied more than one percent even though its central bank hiked interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.75 percent in a bid to curb soaring inflation.
Analysts said investors had been cheered by the way the authorities had so far handled a major anti-government protest that has deepened political uncertainty in Thailand.
Elsewhere, Indian shares slipped back more than one percent, partly due to concerns that the Asian giant's battle with high inflation will require higher interest rates.