Asia-Pacific markets traded higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.41% after hitting a fresh record high on Thursday, while the Topix added 0.61%. South Korea's Kospi climbed 0.83%, and the small-cap Kosdaq jumped 0.65%.
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 added 0.41%.
Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 26,464, higher than its last close of 26,086.32.
Equities in several parts of the world have been rallying as easing inflation pressures and expectations for U.S. rate cuts boost investor sentiment.
"Momentum and the promise of easier money are the main reasons. Various central banks, like the ECB and PBOC, have cut rates or used monetary stimulus, and now the Fed is likely to join the party," said Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers.
Overnight stateside, all three major averages closed higher, as traders anticipated that the latest reading of a key consumer inflation gauge wouldn't stand in the way of the Federal Reserve lowering its benchmark interest rate next week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 617.08 points, or 1.36%, at 46,108.00, while the S&P 500 ended up 0.85% at 6,587.47. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.72% to 22,043.07. All three major averages scored new intraday all-time highs in the trading day and closed at record levels.
The CPI reading showed an increase of 0.4% for the month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, higher than the 0.3% that economists polled by Dow Jones were expecting.
Source: CNBC
Asian stock markets fell in unison on Thursday, following Wall Street's decline. A brief rally in tech stocks led by Nvidia quickly faded, prompting investors to turn away from riskier assets like cry...
China's official NBS Manufacturing PMI increased to 49.7 in June 2025 from May's 49.5, matching market expectations while marking the third consecutive month of contraction in factory activity. It wa...
China's official NBS Non-Manufacturing PMI rose to 50.8 in March 2025, up from 50.4 in February, marking the highest reading in three months and exceeding market expectations of 50.5. The new orders ...
Japan's industrial production grew at the fastest clip in nearly a year, as manufacturers sought to meet strong demand before the US implements new tariffs on autos and auto parts. Factory output&nbs...
Asia-Pacific markets were set to fall Tuesday, tracking Wall Street declines overnight after U.S. President Donald Trump made it clear that tariffs on Mexico and Canada would go into effect as planned...
US stocks closed higher on Friday (December 5), with the S&P 500 up 0.2%, the Nasdaq up 0.4%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.2% as weak PCE data and positive sentiment in Michigan strengthened the likelihood of a 25bps Fed rate cut...
Oil prices edged up nearly 1% to a two-week high on Friday (December 5th) amid growing expectations that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week, which could boost economic growth and energy demand, as well as geopolitical...
Gold closed around $4,210 an ounce on Friday, near its highest level since late October, paring an earlier rally as a series of US data strengthened the case for an imminent Fed rate cut. Delayed September PCE rose 0.3% month-on-month and 2.8%...
Asia Pacific stock markets opened quietly on Wednesday morning, with investors awaiting the release of key economic data from the United States and...
Private businesses in the US cut 32K jobs in November 2025, following an upwardly revised 47K gain in October, and compared to forecasts of a 10K...
European stocks closed higher on Thursday (December 2nd), supported by a rebound in shares of major banks and automakers. The Eurozone STOXX 50 and...
A five-hour meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, in...