Asian Stocks Gain; Hang Seng Tacks on 2.1%

Francis Lun, general manager at Fulbright Securities in Hong Kong, said that Asian markets were following through on the gains in Europe and the U.S., though lacked the vigor of Tuesday's rises.

"Bank results were better than expected" and were helping to buoy markets, he said of the Goldman results, though added that Asia's performance "is not as strong as yesterday."

Kim Joong-hyun, a strategist at Goodmorning Shinhan Securities in Seoul, said that earnings results announced by U.S. chipmaker Intel (INTC Quote) after the close of Wall Street trading were also providing support for markets.

The chipmaker posted sales and profit that breezed past Wall Street's forecasts -- though investors had to overlook a $1.45 billion antitrust fine from the European Union. The fine, which Intel had to pay while it is appealing the case, gave the world's biggest semiconductor company its first quarterly net loss since 1986.

Other big nonfinancial companies such as Google (GOOG Quote) and General Electric (GE Quote) are due to report earnings this week.

Oil prices rose above $60 a barrel in Asia as investors looked to a weekly inventory report for clues on U.S. gasoline demand. Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 69 cents to $60.21 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday, the contract fell 17 cents to settle at $59.52.