Asian Shares Follow Wall Street Higher; Nikkei Surges Over 3% On Weaker Yen

Asian shares advanced on Thursday, buoyed by a tech-fueled rally on Wall Street overnight.

The dollar held firm in Asian trading as signs of some stickiness in U.S. inflation dented hopes for a big rate cut at next week’s Federal Reserve meeting.

Gold edged up marginally while oil prices rose more than 1 percent to extend gains from the previous session, spurred by concerns of Hurricane Francine impacting output in the U.S.

Chinese shares underperformed their regional peers due to economic concerns and rising geopolitical tensions ahead of the November U.S. presidential elections.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.17 percent to 2,717.12. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended up 0.77 percent at 17,240.39.

Japanese markets rose the most in a month as a pause in the yen’s rally lifted semiconductor-related stocks and automakers.

The Nikkei average soared 3.41 percent to 36,833.27, halting a seven-day slide. The broader Topix index settled 2.44 percent higher at 2,592.50.

Honda Motor and Toyota both surged around 4 percent while Advantest soared 9.2 percent and Tokyo Electron added 4.8 percent.

Lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group climbed 2.2 percent after long-term Treasury yields gained.

In economic releases, Japan’s producer price inflation eased in August from an 11-month high in July, the Bank of Japan said in a report today.

The producer price index climbed 2.5 percent year-over-year in August, slower than the 3.0 percent rise in July.

South Korea’s Kospi average jumped 2.34 percent to 2,572.09. The country’s top financial regulator said today it plans to lift the ban on short selling at the end of March.

Samsung Electronics rallied 2.2 percent amid reports it plans to lay off over 200 executives in India due to slowing business growth and weakening consumer demand.

Australian markets ended sharply higher, led by banks and energy stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.10 percent to 8,075.70 while the broader All Ordinaries index climbed 1.19 percent to 8,293.10.

Nine Entertainment shares slumped more than 4 percent before finishing 0.8 percent higher after Mike Sneesby announced his resignation as CEO of the country’s largest media groups.

Across the Atlantic, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index jumped 1.49 percent to 12,820.28 as data showed food prices in the country increased 0.4 percent in the 12 months to August 2024, following a 0.6 percent increase in the 12 months to July 2024.

U.S. stocks reversed course to end higher overnight as Brent crude prices rebounded from 3-1/2-year lows and a key inflation report signaled slowing price growth, bolstering expectations of a 25-bps rate cut at next week’s FOMC meeting.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 2.2 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 1.1 percent and the Dow inched up 0.3 percent.

Data showed the consumer price index slowed to annual rate of 2.5 percent in August from 2.9 percent in July, marking the lowest figure since February 2021.

The so-called core consumer price index, which strips out food and energy costs, came in higher than expected, rising 0.3 percent from July, the most in four months, and 3.2 percent from a year ago.

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