Asian stocks tiptoed higher on Thursday and the dollar consolidated recent gains after the U.S. Federal Reserve painted a relatively bright picture of the economy, but a deepening sell-off in commodities kept gains in check. Prospects of stronger U.S. growth in coming months lifted Asian stocks in early trade, with Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) up 1.1 percent and Australian shares (.AXJO) adding 0.8 percent. A dollar-denominated index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.2 percent after Chinese stocks had a quiet opening.