(RTTNews) - The markets across Asia, open for trading, ended in positive territory with modest gains amid cautious trading on Tuesday amid expectations of better corporate earnings in the U.S. Bellwether Intel Corp and drug giant Johnson & Johnson are scheduled to unveil quarterly results in the US later in the day. Higher commodity prices, including oil prices, also lifted market sentiment. The market in India is closed on the eve of elections in three states. In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index gained 60.17 points, or 0.60%, to 10,077, while the broader Topix index of all first section stocks rose 3.57 points, or 0.40%, to 901. On the economic front, data released by the Bank of Japan revealed that the balance of loan issued by banks in the country rose 1.6% in September compared to the same period last year, following 1.8% annual expansion in the preceding month of August. According to the data, total loans in September for all banks amounted to 465.43 trillion yen. When excluding local credit union institutions or "shinkin banks", the loan total was up 1.7%, after the 1.9% gain in the preceding month. Further, lending by city banks was up 0.6%, slower than the revised 0.8% growth in the previous month. Steel stocks led the gains after brokerages revised their stance on the outlook for the industry. Goldman Sachs raised the rating for JFE Holdings to "conviction buy" and in a separate statement, the World Steel Association that the market for the alloy has bottomed out.. JFE Holdings surged up 4.81%, Nippon Steel Corp. climbed 4.75%, Kobe Steel advanced 2.45% and Sumitomo Metal Industries gained 1.29%. Automotive stocks also ended in positive territory following weaker yen. Toyota Motor Corp gained 2.56%, Honda Motor Corp. rose 2.18%, Suzuki Motor advanced 1.20%, Nissan Motor Co., climbed 1.93% and Mitsubisbhi Motor added 1.35%. Precision machinery stocks ended higher. Olympus Corp. advanced 3.23%, Nikon Corp. climbed 3.39%, Terumo Corp. added 0.45% and Konica Minolta Holdings added 0.56%. Mixed trading was witnessed among banking stocks. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group lost 1.15%, Resona Holdings declined 1.51% and Mizuho Financial edged down 0.53%. However, Mitsubishi UFJ Group bucked the weak trend and ended in positive territory with a gain of 0.60%. In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index advanced 45.90 points, or 0.97% to close at 4,786, while the All-Ordinaries Index ended at 4,790, representing a gain of 44.30 points, or 0.93%. On the economic front, a report released by the National Australia Bank revealed that business confidence in the country unexpectedly slipped for the first time in five months during September, driven primarily by a decline in confidence among manufacturers as well as retailers. The index measuring business confidence stood at 14 in September, down 4 points from August's reading of 18. August marked the highest reading recorded in the index in nearly six years. A figure above zero means optimists outnumber pessimists. Metals and mining stocks led the gains after commodity prices in the international market firmed up on Monday. BHP Billiton gained 0.92%, Rio Tinto climbed 1.45%, Gindalbie Metals rose 2.82%, Iluka Resources added 1.02%, Mincor Resources surged up 7.53%, and Murchison Metals increased 2.60%. Gold stocks ended in positive territory. Lihir Gold rose 1.91%, Newcrest Mining climbed 2.60% and Sino Gold Mining advanced 2.39%. Banks gained following flow of foreign funds in to the country and recent upgrades by brokerages. ANZ Bank rose 1.78%, Commonwealth Bank of Australia gained 1.92%, National Australia Bank advanced 1.52% and Westpac Banking climbed 1.82%. However, investment banker Macquarie Group bucked the trend and ended in negative territory with a loss of 1.18%. Mixed trading was witnessed among oil stocks. While Woodside Petroleum managed to end in positive territory with a gain of 0.68%, Santos slipped 0.33%, Oil Search shed 0.15% and Origin Energy edged down 0.06%. Mixed trading was also witnessed among retail stocks. David Jones gained 2.90% and Harvey Norman surged up 3.42%. However, Wesfarmers declined 1.20% and Woolworths slipped 0.55%. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index ended in positive territory with a modest gain of 168.01 points, or 0.79% at 21,467, taking cues from Wall Street and other markets in the region, including China and Japan. Strength in commodity prices in the international market and weakening of the yen against the dollar also lifted sentiment partially. As many as 32 of the 42 components in the index ended higher as traders picked up stocks on bargain hunting at lower level that drifted in the previous session. In South Korea, the KOSPI Index slipped into negative territory with a loss of 10.88 points, or 0.66% and closed at 1,629, as traders preferred to lock in profits ahead of the earnings in the U.S later in the day that include Intel and Johnson & Johnson. Foreign institutional investors unloaded bank stocks and those of major shipbuilders amid concerns after North Korea yet again test fired missiles, raising tension in the region. Among the other major markets in the region, China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 41.71 points, or 1.44% to 2,937, and Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index added 15.30 points, or 0.62%, to close at 2,472. However, Singapore's Strait Times Index bucked the trend and slipped 12.07 points, or 0.45% to close at 2,668 and Taiwan's Weighted Inded edged down 3.28 points, or 0.04% to 7,597.

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