The NZX top 50 index closed up 12 points to 2747 on Wednesday, on turnover of $94 million.
Top stock Telecom continued to make gains, closed up 3c at $2.60 after hitting $2.64 mid-morning.
Contact Energy gained 8c to $6.78 while Fletcher Building fell 23c to $5.48.
New Zealand Oil and Gas was unchanged at $1.29 despite announcing it had been granted a new exploration permit for an area near the Kupe field.
Slight gains also in Sydney and Tokyo
In Australian the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 51.5 points, or 1.5%, at 3,495.5, while the broader All Ordinaries index lifted 42.8 points, or 1.26%, to 3435.1.
On the Sydney Futures Exchange, the March share price index futures contract was up 82 points at 3458 on a volume of 28,701 contracts, according to preliminary calculations.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index closed up 0.56%, overcoming early losses on hopes that corporate earnings will not be as bad as feared during the recession, dealers said.
The Nikkei rose 45.22 points to 8106.29 but the broader Topix index fell 1.16 to 804.33.
In currency markets at 5.20pm Wednesday the dollar was trading at 52.98 US cents, 79.57 Australian, 37.24 pence, 47.23 yen and .4002 euro. The TWI stood at 52.78.
