Asian Shares Rally On Growth Optimism

Asian stocks rose sharply on Tuesday as positive U.S. vaccination news and easing worries about an imminent tapering of stimulus by the Federal Reserve raised hopes the global economy will recover faster than expects.

Investors also awaited the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole conference later in the week for clues on possible asset purchase tapering timeline.

Chinese shares rose sharply after reports emerged that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has begun issuing new disclosure requirements to Chinese firms looking to list in New York.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite index jumped 37.34 points, or 1.07 percent, to 3,514.47 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended up 2.46 percent at 25,727.92.

Japanese shares followed Wall Street higher, with the Nikkei average ending up 237.86 points, or 0.87 percent, at 27,732.10. The broader Topix index closed 1.0 percent higher at 1,934.20 on expectations for a faster economic recovery globally.

Heavyweight SoftBank Group gained 1.5 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing rose 0.8 percent. Robot maker Fanuc advanced 1.6 percent and chip manufacturing equipment maker Tokyo Electron jumped 2 percent.

Showa Denko shares plummeted 9.6 percent on equity dilution worries after the industrial materials maker announced a sale of new shares.

Australian markets ended higher as investors took comfort from higher commodity prices and a raft of strong corporate earnings.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index edged up 13.10 points, or 0.17 percent, to 7,503 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 12.60 points, or 0.16 percent, at 7,773.70.

Energy stocks such as Origin Energy, Santos and Woodside Petroleum rose over 3 percent each as oil prices jumped more than 5 percent after seven sessions of declines.

Papua New Guinea-focused Oil Search gained 3 percent after it bounced back to a first-half profit. Gold miners Evolution, Newcrest and Norther Star Resources added 1-2 percent as a retreat in the dollar pushed bullion prices higher.

Infection prevention company Nanosonics soared 21.9 percent after it forecast a double-digit revenue growth in fiscal 2022. Wireless broadband services Uniti Group climbed 8.4 percent after reporting record revenue and earnings for the year.

Ansell slumped 9.2 percent after the protective equipment maker warned of COVID-related supply and logistics issues. Online marketplace giant Kogan plunged 15.8 percent after declaring it will not pay a final dividend.

Seoul stocks rallied to extend gains from the previous session amid easing worries of an imminent tapering of Fed stimulus. The Kospi average jumped 48.09 points, or 1.56 percent, to close at 3,138.30 on tech gains.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics climbed 3.1 percent, while No. 2 chipmaker SK Hynix and internet portal operator Naver both advanced 1.9 percent.

Consumer confidence in South Korea dipped slightly in August, according to the latest survey from the Bank of Korea’s sentiment index, which came in with a score of 102.5 – down from 103.2 in July.

New Zealand shares rose after official data showed the country’s retail sales volumes rose a seasonally adjusted 3.3 percent in the second quarter, beating forecasts.

The benchmark NZX-50 index inched up 7.79 points to finish at 13,071.86. Retirement village operator Summerset jumped 4.6 percent after it posted a leap in first-half profit and reassured it could get through a long lockdown if necessary.

U.S. stocks ended on a firm note overnight as commodity prices recovered and regulators granted full approval for the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.

Economic data proved to be a mixed bag, with July home sales beating forecasts while growth at U.S. services and factories slowed to an eight-month low.

The Dow rose 0.6 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 0.9 percent and the-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.6 percent.