GLOBAL MARKETS DJIA 31774.52 193.24 0.61% Nasdaq 11862.13 70.23 0.60% S&P 500 4006.18 26.31 0.66% FTSE 100 7262.06 24.23 0.33% Nikkei Stock 28133.52 68.24 0.24% Hang Seng 19194.21 339.59 1.80% Kospi Closed SGX Nifty* 17912.00 92.5 0.52% *Sept contract USD/JPY 143.69-70 -0.29% Range 144.12 143.55 EUR/USD 1.0067-70 +0.70% Range 1.0075 0.9997 CBOT Wheat Sept $8.104 per bushel Spot Gold $1,714.70/oz 0.4% Nymex Crude (NY) $82.86 $0.92 U.S. STOCKS
U.S. stocks rose Thursday as investors digested remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and the European Central Bank took forceful action to tamp down inflation.
The S&P 500 rose 26.31 points, or 0.7%, to 4006.18. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 193.24 points, or 0.6%, to 31774.52, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 70.23 points, or 0.6%, to 11862.13.
ASIAN STOCKS
Japanese stocks were slightly higher in morning trade, led by gains in pharmaceutical and electronics shares thanks to bargain hunting and a positive lead from U.S. stocks overnight. Shionogi is up 3.0% and Lasertec is 1.6% higher. Meanwhile, Japan Airlines is down 0.5% and Bridgestone is 0.7% lower following gains in crude-oil prices overnight. As the yen has depreciated sharply in recent weeks, any comments on the yen from Japanese government officials will be closely watched. USD/JPY is at 143.81, compared with 143.75 as of Thursday's Tokyo stock-market close. The Nikkei Stock Average is up 0.5% at 28209.14.
Markets in South Korea are closed Friday for a holiday.
Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng Index was up 0.4% at 18930.34. The recovery in risk sentiment could provide a positive backdrop for Asian markets, said IG market strategist Jun Rong Yeap in a morning commentary. Gainers included Country Garden Services Holdings, which rose 2.4%, Country Garden Holdings added 2.3% and Techtronic Industries was 2.1% higher. Decliners included Tencent Holdings, which slipped 0.2% after its largest shareholder Prosus continued to pare its stake in the company.
Chinese shares rose in early trade, as investors digested the country's latest inflation data, which softened to 2.5% in August from 2.7% in July. Sentiment was still weighed by domestic Covid-19 outbreaks, though the State Council said in a recent meeting that it would strengthen policies to support employment. Property developers, miners and pharma stocks are gaining, while some electronics shares weakened. Poly Developments and Gemdale Corp. were each up 3.0%, while Wuxi AppTec added 2.6%. Luxshare Precision dropped 1.5% and Will Semiconductor was 1.0% lower. The Shanghai Composite Index added 0.3% to 3244.01, the Shenzhen Composite Index climbed 0.1% and the ChiNext Price Index was 0.6% higher.
FOREX
USD/JPY could continue to rally, but this would likely be at a slower pace than previous rallies, UOB analysts said in a note. "Deeply overbought conditions suggest a slower pace of advance and at this stage, the chance for USD to rise to the 1998 high near 147.65 is not high," they added. UOB put support at 143.40 and resistance at 144.60 for the pair. USD/JPY was 0.4% lower at 143.598.
METALS
Gold was higher in early Asian trade. The precious metal may trade sideways around the $1,700/oz level until next week's U.S. inflation report, Oanda market strategist Edward Moya said in a morning report. The World Gold Council reckons gold could remain under pressure if central banks continue raising rates aggressively, though the risk of either stagflation or recession could offset this given that the haven metal has historically outperformed in these conditions. "Near-term, we expect trading volumes and consumer demand to pick up in September," amid a historically strong demand season, it said in a commentary. Spot gold was up 0.4% at $1,714.70/oz.
OIL SUMMARY
Oil prices were slightly lower in early Asian trade. Weekly inventory reports from the Energy Information Administration are providing mixed signals for oil prices, ANZ analysts said. While crude oil stockpiles rose by 8.85 million barrels for the week ended Sept. 2, they fell in Cushing, which was one of the largest storage hubs in the U.S., they said in a note. The front-month WTI contract was down 0.3% at $83.27/bbl while Brent crude futures contract fell 0.2% to $88.96/bbl.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
09-08-22 2315ET
