JAPAN

Japanese auto sales jumped by a quarter in March to cap a business year that relied heavily on government incentives, while South Korea's Hyundai Motor continued to rack up impressive sales growth, sending its shares to a record high.

NEW YORK, April 1 (Reuters) - The euro rallied against the dollar on Thursday, lifted by quarterly positioning and gains in the single currency against the Swiss franc as investors looked ahead to the U.S. non-farm payrolls report. Traders cited talk of intervention by the Swiss National Bank as lifting the euro against the franc, adding there was some SNB activity in the dollar/Swiss franc pair.

Wall Street was poised for a higher open on Thursday as U.S. weekly jobless claims fell last week and upbeat data from China and Europe fueled optimism the global economy is on track for growth.

Gold rose on Thursday to a two-week high and platinum group metals rallied to their highest in more than 20 months as fresh investment money poured into commodities.

Stock index futures rose on Thursday as upbeat data from China and Europe fueled optimism the global economy is on track for growth.

Factories across Europe and Asia cranked up production in March, business surveys showed on Thursday, showing a strong recovery in fast-growing emerging markets taking root in the developed West.

Dai-ichi Life Insurance rose 14 percent on its debut on Thursday after pricing its $11 billion IPO at a discount to rivals, but investors remain wary of its growth prospects outside a mature Japanese market.

Factories in China and India cranked up production in March and Japanese business morale rose to its highest in more than a year on signs of improving global demand, boosting hopes for a sustainable economic recovery.

Japan's Panasonic Corp's purchase of Sanyo Electric is set to boost profits more than expected as they now plan additional cost savings by merging their accounting systems and procuring materials together, the Nikkei business daily said.

Asian stocks rose to an 11-week high on Thursday as China's manufacturing industry picked up and foreign buying boosted the technology-heavy markets of Taiwan and South Korea.

Asian stocks made a solid start to the second quarter on Thursday inching closer to two-month highs as China's manufacturing sector picked up and foreign buying boosted tech shares in Taiwan and South Korea.

The U.S. economy is still in a tough spot but is gradually regaining its balance after a series of policy mistakes that made the country weaker and less secure, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday. We are coming back, and we are coming back faster and stronger than most people predicted -- faster and stronger than Europe and Japan, Geithner said after meeting with steel executives and union leaders here.

Japanese shares rose to 18-month highs on Wednesday, continuing to eclipse their peers elsewhere in Asia, as a rebound in U.S. consumer confidence boosted investors' hopes that the global economic recovery will prove to be sustainable.

Japanese shares rose to 18-month highs on Wednesday, continuing to eclipse their peers elsewhere in Asia, as a rebound in U.S. consumer confidence boosted hopes that a global economic recovery will prove to be sustainable.

The Australian dollar advanced again for the second day against the Greenback pushed on by gains in commodities.

Nissan Motor Co priced its battery-powered Leaf hatchback at more than twice the cost of a similarly sized gasoline car, counting on government subsidies to drive demand for the emissions-free vehicles.

The 'cloud' of data which is becoming the heart of the Internet is creating an all too real cloud of pollution as Facebook, Apple and others build data centers powered by coal, according to a new Greenpeace report.

The Japanese government will set incremental goals to reduce its heavy reliance on debt in its upcoming fiscal strategy, the Nikkei business daily said, but analysts doubted it would be enough to allay concerns about its massive borrowing.

Toyota Motor Corp , reeling from a recall crisis, launched a task force on Tuesday aimed at regaining consumer trust and pledged to give more clout to its regional operations to speed up decisions on quality issues.

Asian stock markets rose on Tuesday as the weak U.S. dollar spurred overnight gains in commodities, boosting commodity-linked stocks in the region.

Asian stock markets rose on Tuesday as the weak U.S. dollar spurred overnight gains in commodities, boosting commodity-linked stocks in the region.