By AFP Hong Kong – Asian stocks mostly kicked off the year with gains on Tuesday as traders drifted back to work after the festive break, with Hong Kong the standout performer, though the dollar faced fresh pressure from most other currencies. Regional investors shrugged off dips in New York on the last day of 2017, instead building on the healthy advances fuelled by strong data, improving corporate profits and hopes Donald Trump's tax cuts will fire US growth. Hong Kong led Tuesday's rally, jumping 1.8 percent in the afternoon to its highest level since late 2007, while Shanghai ended 1.2 percent higher, boosted by data showing manufacturing activity in China continued to expand in December. Tokyo was closed for a holiday The news comes as China's leaders look to handle a tricky transition of the economy from state investment and exports to one driven by consumer demand, while also addressing a growing debt mountain and fighting pollution. And Rajiv Biswas, chief Asia-Pacific economist at IHS Markit in Singapore, warned that Beijing's success in this would have consequences around the world. “Risks to the Chinese economy will remain among the key risks to the global growth outlook in 2018, with the Asia Pacific region particularly vulnerable to the shock waves from a slowdown,” he told Bloomberg News.