Asian markets forged higher Tuesday after another day of gains on Wall Street led by technology stocks. U.S. futures were nearly flat and oil prices edged higher. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225, reopening after a national holiday, jumped 1.6% to 38,835.10. The advance was led by semiconductor companies like Tokyo Electron, which closed 4.8% higher, and Advantest, which picked up 2.2%. The Kospi in South Korea surged 2.1% to 2,731.83, helped by big tech companies like Samsung Electronics, which racked up a 4.5% gain, and smaller rival SK Hynix, which added 3.7%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.5% to 18,470.90. But the Shanghai Composite index recovered from early losses, gaining 0.3% to 3,148.56. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.3% to 7,781.70 after the central bank decided to keep interest rates unchanged at 4.35%. While the Reserve Bank of Australia has likely set the bar high for any rate hikes, it “will probably need to see several more months of soft data before it is confident that it can loosen policy settings. All told, rate cuts will likely take longer to materialize than most are anticipating,” Abhijit Surya of Capital Economics said in a commentary. |
Night landscape against stunning Milky Way in N China4th China International Consumer Products Expo to kick offWashington DC is crowned the hardestRussia says proof show link between Moscow attack terrorists, UkraineThe Philippine president says he won't give US access to more local military basesIAEA chief calls for maximum restraint over Zaporizhzhia attacksChina's Tianjin port welcomes three int'l cruise ships within a weekShanghai released 2024 events guideTourism booms in threeSupreme Court rejects appeal from Black Lives Matter activist over Louisiana protest lawsuit