Asia markets gain after Wall Street notches up records
AFP
AFP, HONG KONG: Asian markets gained yesterday, with Tokyo closing at a two-year high following fresh records on Wall Street, as investors were cheered by the release of strong economic data.
All three US indices ended at records, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.7 per cent Monday.
Tokyos benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 1.05 per cent to finish at 20,614.07 on yesterday, its best close since August 2015, with a weaker yen boosting Japanese exporters.
Analysts said the markets were unaffected by a mass shooting from a Las Vegas hotel that left at least 59 dead and hundreds injured.
The global markets trudge on, searching for opportunities, realising these tragedies are becoming all too commonplace, said Stephen Innes, head of Asia-Pacific trading at OANDA.
And as cynical as that may seem, that is the reality weve come to accept, he added.
US manufacturing activity rose to its highest level in 13 years last month, making investors bullish about the third-quarter US earnings season which begins in around 10 days.
Companies in the SP 500 are projected to report a five per cent year-over-year gain in operating earnings-per-share (EPS), according to CFRA Research.
President Donald Trumps market-friendly tax reform proposals, including a plan to cut the corporate tax rate from 35 per cent to 20 per cent, have also buoyed investors.
Hong Kong closed 2.25 per cent higher after a long weekend while Manila gained 0.6 per cent and Sydney edged down 0.4 per cent.
The weaker yen lifted Japanese automakers and other exporters despite an announcement from Nissan late Monday it was recalling some 1.2 million cars in Japan that had failed to meet domestic rules on vehicle inspections.
The gains came after the Bank of Japans Tankan survey showed business confidence in the worlds third-largest economy had hit its highest level in a decade.
Global growth, folks, global growth. Thats the economic story of the night as the raft of manufacturing PMIs released in the past 24 hours tell the story of a continuation of this trend toward synchronisation and strength, said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at AxiTrader.
Gold continues to fall as the global economy grows... (and) as risk aversion wanes, he added.
Europes stock markets were little changed at the start of trading yesterday, with Londons benchmark FTSE 100 index down fractionally.
The Paris CAC 40 gained 0.2 per cent while Frankfurts DAX 30 was shut because of a public holiday in Germany.
The euro struggled to recover against the dollar following a police crackdown on the banned Catalonia independence referendum.
Catalonias leader declared victory in the referendum to secede from Spain, prompting a warning from Madrid that it would do everything within the law to prevent the region from declaring independence.
The referendum was marred by shocking scenes of police violence, with security forces moving in on polling stations across the region to stop people from voting, in some cases using batons and firing rubber bullets to disperse crowds.
