Asian Stocks End Higher; Nikkei Gains 1.4%

Japanese shares fell before rebounding to trade higher, with the Nikkei 225 average closing up 1.4% to 8,847.01. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 2.3%, and South Korea's Kospi added 0.9%.

Elsewhere, stocks in Australia rose and Shanghai's main index was little changed with a 0.1% gain.

Car companies shone across the region. In South Korea, Hyundai climbed 3.2% though it reported a 43% drop in net profit for the first quarter. One bright spot: its global market share rose to 4.7% during the period from 4% the year before.

Japanese auto giant Toyota rose 3.5% after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the company. Mazda added 5.4%

In Hong Kong, shares of PCCW tanked 12.9% after a buyout group led by company Chairman Richard Li abandoned its bid for the telecom firm following a court decision striking down the proposal.

On Wednesday on Wall Street, an early rally fizzled after Morgan Stanley's report, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 82.99, or 1%, to 7,886.57.

Broader market measures were mixed. The S&P 500 index fell 6.53, or 0.8%, to 843.55, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 2.27, or 0.1%, to 1,646.12.

Oil prices were little changed, with benchmark crude for June delivery up 5 cents at $48.90 a barrel, as rising U.S. crude inventories and a grim demand forecast by the IMF hurt sentiment. The contract rose 30 cents Wednesday to settle at $48.85.

The dollar was higher at 98.14 yen from 98.03 yen.