HONG KONG, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Asian stocks were largely on the front foot on Tuesday following Wall Street's record highs on its first trading day of 2022, despite worries that the widespread Omicron COVID-19 variant could put the brakes on global economic recovery.

MILAN, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Car sales rose 5.51% overall last year in Italy to reach the level of 1,457,952, Italy's transport ministry said on Monday, highlighting a positive result compared with 2020, when the sales fell nearly 28% on the previous year.

OSLO, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Electric cars made up nearly two-thirds of Norway's new sales in 2021, with Tesla the top-selling automobile brand overall, as the country pursues its goal of becoming the first to end the sale of petrol and diesel cars.

SEOUL, Jan 3 (Reuters) - South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS) and affiliate Kia Corp (000270.KS) on Monday forecast that their combined global sales will jump 12.1% in 2022, even as last year's sales fell short of target due to a global chip shortage.

TOKYO, Jan 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar reached its strongest level in more than a month against the Japanese yen on Tuesday, lifted by a jump in Treasury yields overnight as traders bet on an early Federal Reserve interest rate hike despite surging COVID-19 cases.

BEIJING, Jan 4 (Reuters) - China's factory activity grew at its fastest pace in six months in December, driven by production hikes and easing price pressures, but a weaker job market and business confidence added uncertainty, a private survey showed on Tuesday.