Business & Finance
Asian markets mostly gain following technology-led Wall Street rally
Regional indexes advanced tracking U.S. market gains, while oil prices remained elevated amid ongoing conflict between the U.S. and Iran.
The short version
- Most major Asian stock benchmarks advanced in early Friday trading, following gains across Wall Street led by technology companies.
- Crude oil prices remained elevated above $91 per barrel due to the ongoing six-month conflict between the U.S. and Iran.
- Central bank decisions remain a key focus, with investors evaluating upcoming inflation data ahead of Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan policy meetings.
Key facts
- Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 2.1%, Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.6%, South Korea's Kospi advanced 0.9%, and the Shanghai Composite climbed 0.8%, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell less than 0.1%.[Associated Press]
- The S&P 500 rose 1.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.2%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.4% on Thursday.[Associated Press]
- Nvidia shares gained 1.8% following an announcement that it plans to acquire AI platform Hugging Face for $13 billion.[Associated Press]
- Benchmark U.S. crude rose to $91.95 a barrel and Brent crude reached $95.99 a barrel, supported by tensions from the six-month U.S.-Iran war.[Associated Press]
- Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller noted he would favor holding interest rates steady if forthcoming inflation indicators show signs of cooling.[Associated Press]
What remains uncertain
- The timing and extent of any interest rate increase by the Bank of Japan remain unresolved ahead of its policy meeting later this month.[Associated Press]
- The Federal Reserve's upcoming rate decision remains contingent on impending inflation data.[Associated Press]