China staged dramatic rallies for a second consecutive session.

In Shanghai, government moves to shore up the markets continued to boost confidence. The composite index surged 7.8 per cent to 2,236.410, bringing its rise over the last two days to 17.9 per cent.

Most financials gained by their daily 10 per cent limit, including Ping An Insurance at Rmb37.10, Citic Securities at Rmb19.67, China Merchants Bank at Rmb18.05 and Bank of Communications at Rmb6.28.

In Taiwan, the weighted index climbed 2.4 per cent to 6,110.60, after regulators banned short selling of component stocks of the main local indices if they trade below the previous session's closing price.

Hon Hai, the leading electronics manufacturer, gained 3.2 per cent to T$129.50, while banking and life insurance group Cathay Financial rose 3 per cent to T$50.20. Nan Ya Plastics gained 4.3 per cent to T$49.30.

In Hong Kong, resource stocks propelled the market higher.

The Hang Seng index gained 1.6 per cent to 19,632.20, while China Enterprise shares climbed 1.6 per cent to 10,227.38.

Oil company CNOOC rose 6 per cent to HK$9.91 and Jiangxi Copper rocketed 11.3 per cent to HK$10.02.