Asian stocks were moderately higher on Thursday, AP reported. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.2 percent to 19,929.27 and South Korea's Kospi gained 0.8 percent to 2,288.90. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index advanced 0.3 percent to 25,096.16. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.3 percent to 5,891.60. But Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.4 percent to 3,041.00. Stocks in Singapore and Southeast Asia were higher. Benchmark U.S. crude added 21 cents to $47.54 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange after surging $1.45, or 3.2 percent, to $47.33 a barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 20 cents to $50.42 per barrel in London after closing up $1.49, or 3.1 percent, at $50.22 in the previous session. The dollar fell to 114.21 yen from 114.29 yen. The euro rose to $1.0874 from $1.0868.
