The Nikkei 225 rose 0.6% to close at 39,901, while the broader Topix climbed 0.7% to 2,840 on Thursday, snapping early losses and rebounding from a slight dip in the previous session. The benchmark index hit its highest level in two weeks, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street after US President Donald Trump denied plans to dismiss Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Investors also digested Japan's latest trade data, which showed declines in exports to the U.S. and China, offset by strong gains in shipments to the EU, ASEAN, and Russia. However, upside momentum was limited by growing...
The STOXX 50 rose 0.9% and the STOXX 600 gained 0.6% on Thursday, marking their first advances in six and five consecutive sessions, respectively, as investor attention shifted to corporate earnings. Chip stocks rebounded from sharp losses the previous day, supported by upbeat results from TSMC. Notable gains included ASML Holding (+2.7%), Infineon Technologies (+2%), and STMicroelectronics (+3.7%). ABB jumped more than 7% after reporting record order intake and Volvo added 0.7% after reporting better-than-expected earnings, with signs of recovery in Europe helping to offset weak truck...
The Hang Seng Index weakened 19 points, or nearly 0.1%, to close at 24,499 on Thursday (July 17th), declining for the second consecutive session due to continued profit-taking after the benchmark index hit a four-month high earlier in the week. Slight declines in US index futures ahead of key retail sales data later in the day also weighed on sentiment. Meanwhile, concerns over escalating US tariffs persisted after President Trump announced plans to send letters to more than 150 countries, outlining potential tariffs of between 10% and 15%. He described most of the letter recipients as "not...