Employees of the Korea Exchange pose in front of the final stock price index during a photo opportunity for the media at the ceremonial closing event of the 2012 stock market at the Korea Exchange in Seoul December yesterday. South Korean shares finished the year higher yesterday boosted by heavyweight Samsung Electronics in a thin trading session.

AFP/Tokyo

Asian shares rose yesterday on hopes of a last-minute deal to avert the US fiscal cliff, despite warnings from a leading Democrat that an agreement is unlikely just days before a year-end deadline.
Expectations for more aggressive monetary easing by the Bank of Japan continued to weigh on the yen, which was sitting at more than two-year lows against the dollar.
In its last trading day of the year Tokyo’s Nikkei climbed 0.70% to highs not seen since before last year’s March 11 quake-tsunami disaster. The index ended 72.20 points up at 10,395.18. It rose 22.9% for the year.
Sydney gained 0.50%, or 23.3 points, to close at 4,671.3 and Seoul closed up 0.49%, or 9.70 points, to 1,997.05.
Hong Kong added 0.21%, or 46.81 points, to end at 22,666.59, while Shanghai put on 1.24%, or 27.35 points, to 2,233.25.
In other markets; Taipei rose 51.09 points, or 0.67%, to 7,699.50; Manila added 0.31%, or 17.84 points, to close at 5,812.73; Wellington ended 0.38%, or 15.46 points, higher at 4,080.90; Bangkok fell 0.38% or 5.26 points to 1,391.93; Jakarta ended up 34.83 points, or 0.81%, at 4,316.68; Singapore closed up 0.25%, or 7.87 points to 3,191.80; while Kuala Lumpur gained 7.17 points, or 0.43%, for a record closing high of 1,681.33.
US politicians have until Tuesday to come up with a deficit-cutting budget that is less painful than the steep tax hikes and swingeing spending cuts that most economists say will tip the country into recession.
Despite the uncertainty in Washington the dollar climbed against the yen, buying ¥86.40 in early Asian trade, up from ¥86.09 in New York late Thursday, hovering around its highest level since August 2010.
The euro was at ¥114.39 and $1.3248, against ¥113.97 and $1.3235.
Investors have been selling the yen on expectations Japan’s new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will carry out his promises of more aggressive monetary easing and big government spending to lift inflation and kickstart the economy.
There was little movement on news that factory output for November was down a bigger than forecast 1.7% month on month and a warning from the economy ministry that “industrial production is on a downward trend.”