Asian shares boosted by Chinese data Thursday 03:30 GMT. Asian equities rose across the board after Chinese trade data came in better than expected. Chinese exports expanded 14.1 per cent in December against a forecast of 4 per cent, while imports increased 6 per cent, official data showed on Thursday. The Shanghai Composite put on 0.3 per cent, while the Hang Seng China Enterprises index - Hong Kong listings of mainland Chinese companies - jumped 1.4 per cent, with bank shares leading the gains. Bank of China increased 1.7 per cent while ICBC rose 1.2 per cent. Hong Kong's broader Hang Seng index added 1 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.9 per cent, boosted by export stocks. Honda Motor put on 2.8 per cent while air conditioner maker Daikin surged 4.3 per cent. Elsewhere in the region, South Korea's Kospi and Taiwan's benchmark index each added 1 per cent, while Australia's ASX 200 edged up 0.3 per cent. Southeast Asian shares were mixed, the Philippines index sinking 1 per cent, having breached the 6,000 level for the first time on January 4. "Overall direction remains limited ahead of a plethora of earnings releases over coming days and more immediately with European Central Bank and Bank of England meetings today," Crédit Agricole analysts wrote in a note. In currency markets, the yen resumed its fall against the US dollar and was trading at 88.09 by lunchtime in Tokyo. The South Korean won continued its steady path of appreciation against the greenback, edging up 0.7 per cent. The Indonesian rupiah was the region's worst performing currency, sinking by more than 1 per cent against the dollar. Earlier, in New York, the S&P 500 advanced 0.3 per cent to 1,461, within just a few points of a fresh five-year peak.