The regional STOXX 600 index closed up 0.05pc after a mixed session, while Germany's DAX rose 0.1pc, France's CAC inched 0.2pc lower and Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.7pc.
At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 578.62 points, or 2.18%, at 27,147.11, its highest close since Feb. 21. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 2.05% to 10,662.93.
The FTSE 100 touched its lowest since Dec. 2 in early trading, but clawed back some of its losses to trade down 1.2% as the pound's 2% drop limited a fall in the exporter-heavy index.
Oil prices also sank as the new containment measures hammered expectations for travel over the Christmas period, with the discovery of a mutated and more infectious strain of the coronavirus in Britain also leading several governments to ban flights from the country.
Germany and France said they were set to begin inoculating their citizens with the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine in the last week of December, once it is approved by the European Medicines Agency.
In the Philippines, the peso advanced 0.2% and stocks climbed to their highest since Feb. 21, as the central bank raised its projections for current account and balance of payments surpluses this year and in 2021.
Investors are also concerned that Beijing could start tightening monetary policies amid a robust economic recovery and surging commodity prices, though analysts do not see any major policy reversals any time soon.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 was up 0.3% by 0802 GMT, led by financial, energy and consumer discretionary stocks, as Asian shares hit a record high following positive vaccine news.
Fears of further economic stress due to rising COVID-19 cases, coupled with Brexit uncertainty, have washed out gains seen over the previous month and dampened risk sentiment.