Hang Seng has best January in 16 years Asian shares climbed after it was reported that progress had been made in debt talks with Greece's creditors, helping Hong Kong shares have their best January in 16 years. The FTSE Asia Pacific index rose 0.7 per cent to 237.97. Some of the best performances came from Hong Kong, as the Hang Seng index put in its best January since 1996, up 10.6 per cent on the month. On the day, it climbed 1.1 per cent to 20,390.49, with a number of financials and retailers heading the list of gainers. Want Want China, the food and beverages group, was the biggest gainer, up 5.1 per cent to HK$7.19, while retailer Belle International gained 3.5 per cent to HK$12.60. China Life Insurance added 3.2 per cent to HK$22.85. But metal stocks underperformed the market after Aluminium Corp of China, also known as Chinalco, and Angang Steel issued profit warnings. Chinalco dropped 3.8 per cent to HK$3.78 and Angang sank 10.9 per cent to HK$5.57. Maanshan Iron & Steel tumbled 7.6 per cent to HK$2.68. The Shanghai Composite gained 0.3 per cent to 2,292.6. After early gains, SAIC Motor, China's largest carmaker, fell on profit taking as it estimated 2011 net profit jumped more than 40 per cent, from the previous year's net profit of Rmb13.7bn ($2.2bn). Shares, which have gained nearly 10 per cent in January, fell 2.5 per cent to Rmb15.09. In Tokyo, economic data boosted sentiment but gains were limited as the yen's strength kept pressure on exporters. The Nikkei 225 Average edged 0.1 per cent higher to 8,802.51, and was up 4.1 per cent over the month. Industrial production increased 4 per cent in December, from the month before, as the effects of the March 11 earthquake and Thai flooding faded. Kawasaki Heavy Industry, the shipbuilder and engine maker, climbed 3.7 per cent to Y224 after announcing a forecast-beating 16 per cent rise in nine-month net profit. Shinsei Bank climbed 3.6 per cent to Y86 after its nine-month earnings were not as bad as feared. Nippon Sharyo, a major train maker, climbed 1.9 per cent to Y327, having at one point been as much as 9 per cent higher, after the company received an order for 160 train cars from Central Japan Railway. In Seoul, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering surged 6.5 per cent to Won27,850 after winning a $556m order to build tankers for Kuwait Oil Tanker. The Kospi Composite index climbed 0.8 per cent to 1,955.79.