Asian shares rose Thursday

Asian shares rose Thursday, with solid economic data from China and Australia lifting sentiment as investors awaited a possible bailout for Greece.
Investors cheered new numbers out of Beijing that showed a spike in inflation eased in January. Consumer prices in January climbed 1.5 percent over a year earlier, down from December's sharp 1.9 percent rise.
The decline suggests Beijing can put off taking drastic steps such as a rate hike that would have global repercussions if it slowed China's recovery and its demand for imported raw materials and consumer goods.
"The inflation data surprised us because it was a lot lower than the market expected," said economist Liu Qiyuan of China Merchant Securities.
The news helped send China's Shanghai index up 0.2 percent to 2,987.17, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 1.4 percent to 20,201.24. Japanese financial markets were closed for a national holiday and will reopen Friday.
Strong jobs data drove Australia's benchmark up 0.9 percent to 4,552.9. The Australian labor market surpassed expectations in January, adding more than 50,000 jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent from 5.5 percent.
Stock markets in Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea also posted gains. As expected, South Korea's central bank left its key interest rate at a record low 2 percent Thursday.
Meanwhile, investors across Asia kept watch on developments in Europe, where leaders will hold a summit later Thursday to discuss Greek's debt crisis.
European markets rose overnight on hopes that the meeting will help Greece handle its debt load, avoid a disastrous default and keep the crisis from spreading to other vulnerable countries like Portugal and Spain.
In the U.S. on Wednesday, the Dow fell 20.26, or 0.2 percent, to 10,038.38 a day after jumping 150 points on Greece bailout hopes. Weighing down Wall Street were comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that outlined plans to dismantle the central bank's emergency supports for the U.S. economy.
The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 2.39, or 0.2 percent, to 1,068.13, while Nasdaq composite index fell 3.00, or 0.1 percent, to 2,147.87.