Asian exporters lifted by Europe hopes Asian equities rose as investors took heart from the pro-bailout party's win in the Greek election, sending shares of companies that export to Europe higher. The FTSE Asia Pacific index gained 1.3 per cent to 223.59 as all but India's main stock index rallied strongly. The BSE Sensex in Mumbai fell 1.7 per cent to 16,658.59 in late trade after the country's central bank surprised markets by electing not to cut interest rates. Banks were the worst hit stocks on the Sensex. State Bank of India fell 4 per cent to Rs2,094.70 while ICICI Bank shed 3.3 per cent to Rs816.70 and HDFC Bank lost 2.6 per cent to Rs533.45. Risk appetite increased across the rest of the region, however, amid signs a new pro-bailout government would be formed in Greece. Exporters did well, particularly those with exposure to European markets, which had been sold off heavily in recent sessions. Meanwhile, a weaker yen helped lift Japanese automakers. Mazda Motors , which had fallen sharply in the past four weeks, jumped the most, climbing 6 per cent to Y106. Toyota climbed 2 per cent to Y3,055, and was the most traded stock by turnover on the main board. Europe-focused camera maker Canon rose 1.4 per cent to Y3,240. The Nikkei 225 index rose 1.8 per cent to 8,721.02. Shipbuilders rallied in Seoul, with Hyundai Heavy Industries climbing 2.8 per cent to Won280,000 after winning $600m of orders for oil and gas production units. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering surged 3.6 per cent to Won28,800 and Samsung Heavy Industries climbed 5.1 per cent to Won38,950. South Korea's Kospi Composite gained 1.8 per cent to 1,891.71. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index gained 1 per cent to 19,427.81, but bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing fell 4.5 per cent to HK$107.40 after many analysts said its $2.2bn deal to buy the London Metal Exchange was too expensive. Shares of resource stocks rallied as commodity prices surged in the wake of renewed risk appetite. China's largest offshore oil producer Cnooc rose 2.1 per cent in Hong Kong to HK$15.52, while Jiangxi Copper rose 0.9 per cent to HK$25.19 in Shanghai. The Shanghai Composite index edged 0.4 per cent higher to 2,316.1. In Sydney, diversified miner Rio Tinto advanced 4.6 per cent to A$57, while Lynas Corp climbed 6.3 per cent to A$0.94 after Malaysia late last week rejected an appeal by local residents to cancel the Australian miner's license to run the world's largest rare-earths refining facility in the south-east Asian country. Fairfax Media surged 7.4 per cent to A$0.65 on its plans to cut 1,900 jobs and shrink its flagship broadsheet newspapers to tabloid size to cut costs. The S&P/ASX 200 index gained 2 per cent to 4,136.9.