By V. Phani Kumar
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- A rally in commodity stocks such as Rio Tinto (RTP 162.83, +7.00, +4.49%) (AU:RIO 59.95, +1.10, +1.87%) and Nippon Light Metal (JP:5701 104.00, +2.00, +1.96%) boosted Asian stocks early Friday, as metal prices climbed and crude-oil futures rose above $71 a barrel. Japan's Nikkei 225 Average gained 0.8% to 10,597.54, and the Topix Index climbed 0.4% to 972.36. Australia's resource-sensitive S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.6%, New Zealand's NZX 50 advanced 0.8%, and South Korea's Kospi added 1.3%.
