Asian Shares Edge Higher On Optimism About Slowing Inflation

Asian stocks rose broadly on Tuesday after Wall Street stocks ended higher overnight for a second straight session, fueled by a surge in technology stocks.

Most of the regional markets, including South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

The dollar held near a nine-month low versus the euro and gave back recent gains against the yen as U.S. Treasury yields slipped amid expectations that the Federal Reserve will moderate its aggressive anti-inflation posture.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Monday said a strong labor market and easing inflation in the United States were “very hopeful signs.”

Japanese stocks rallied to lead regional gains, led by technology stocks. The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 1.5 percent to 27,299.19, marking its highest close since December 16 as investors braced for the earnings season.

The broader Topix closed 1.4 percent higher at 1,972.92. Tokyo Electron, Screen Holdings, Advantest and SoftBank Group climbed 2-3 percent.

GS Yuasa Corp soared 3.8 percent after the battery maker announced a joint venture with Honda Motor to develop cutting-edge lithium-ion batteries. Shares of the latter rose 1.2 percent.

Australian markets rose modestly to extend gains for a fifth day running, with miners and tech stocks leading the surge.

Financials came under selling pressure as a survey from National Australia Bank showed its index of business conditions fell 8 points to +12 in December.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index climbed 0.4 percent to 7,490.40, while the broader All Ordinaries Index added 0.5 percent to close at 7,710.50.

Myer Holdings surged 5.3 percent after the department store posted its strongest sales in almost 20 months in the five months ended December 31.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index slipped 0.1 percent to settle at 11,932.92. India’s Sensex was up 0.2 percent in range-bound trade.

U.S. stocks jumped overnight to extend big gains from Friday as investors reacted to a stream of corporate news and earnings results.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 2 percent and the S&P 500 jumped 1.2 percent to reach their best closing levels in over a month, while the Dow added 0.8 percent.