Asian stock markets rebounded Wednesday as traders looked past bleak U.S. jobs data and Europe's debt crisis to scoop up bargains following a steep sell-off. Oil prices lingered above $86 per barrel. The dollar fell against the euro and the yen.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index, which on Tuesday fell to its lowest level since April 2009, rose 1.7 percent to 8,734.42. A slightly softer yen helped Japan's powerhouse export sector recover from the beating it took earlier this week.

Mazda Motor Corp. jumped 3.4 percent, and Sony Corp. gained 2.7 percent. Toyota Motor Corp. rose 2.2 percent.

Markets received further good news when the Australian government said the economy expanded 1.2 percent in the quarter through June, rebounding from a 0.9 percent contraction in the previous three months. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 2.3 percent at 4,168.10.

South Korea's Kospi clawed back the prior day's losses to rise 2.7 percent at 1,814.60. Blue chip high-tech stocks were among those leading the way. Hynix Semiconductor, the world's second-largest memory chip maker, soared 7.4 percent. LG Electronics Inc., which ranks No. 2 globally in flat screen televisions, was 8.1 percent higher.

Peter Lai, director of DBS Vickers in Hong Kong, said investors were bargain-hunting for deals in commodities, the retail sector and industries favored by the Chinese government, like infrastructure.

Retailing shares in Asia also are attractive, Lai said, because governments in the region have been trying to persuade their traditionally thrifty populations to spend rather than save. GOME Electrical Appliance Holdings, China's largest appliances retailer, jumped 4.4 percent. Read More