Asia-Pacific stocks were mostly up Thursday, with several markets remaining closed for Boxing Day. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.08%, while the Topix added 1.07%, a day after a report said the country was preparing a record $735 billion budget for its fiscal year starting in April.

The Japanese government is expected to approve a record initial budget Friday for the next fiscal year that will ramp up spending on defense and support for regional economies.

Japan's government is set to compile a record $734 billion budget for the fiscal year from April due to larger social security and debt-servicing costs, adding to the industrial world's heaviest debt,

In a phone call with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Zelensky expressed his gratitude for Japan's previous aid to Ukraine, which has totaled $12 billion and "makes it possible to save thousands of lives.

Japan will transfer another US$3 billion obtained from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. Source: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following a conversation with Prime Minister of Japan Shigeru Ishiba Details: Zelenskyy thanked the Japanese government for additional funding for energy equipment and the construction of

The Ukrainian Prime Minister announced on social media that the United States has provided Ukraine with the first billion dollars from a loan secured by frozen Russian assets. However, this is just the beginning of the support that Russia,