Asian shares mostly higher, China markets fall back
BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares were mostly higher on Wednesday as investors bet on eventual approval of a relatively big version of President Joe Biden's pandemic relief bill. The advance followed a broad rally on Wall Street, with solid contributions from Big Tech companies, banks and other sectors.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 rose 0.8% to 28,589.22 and the Kospi in South Korea climbed 0.6% to 3,116.38. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 surged 1.2% to 6,844.90. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong declined 0.4% to 29, 052.90 while the Shanghai Composite index bounced back from earlier losses, gaining 0.1% to 3,536.89.
With Democrats and Republicans remaining far apart on support for President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus package, investors are betting that the administration will opt for a reconciliation process to get the legislation through Congress.
“Positive earnings reports as well as hopes for Biden’s fiscal rescue plan may have bolstered risk sentiment, with U.S. Senate Democrats announcing they would push through with the stimulus bill even without bipartisan support," Prakash Sakpal and Nicholas Mapa of ING said in a report.
Overnight, Big Tech companies and banks helped power a broad rally on Wall Street Tuesday. Shares in GameStop and other recent high-flying stocks hyped by online traders plunged. The stocks have been caught up in a speculative frenzy by traders in online forums and on social media who seek to inflict damage on Wall Street hedge funds that have bet these stocks would fall.
GameStop plunged 60% to $90 a share, and AMC Entertainment lost 41.2% to $7.82 a share. Both companies have been in the spotlight for more than two weeks as the online community of investors pushed the stocks to astronomical levels.
The price of silver, whose 9% spike on Monday fueled speculation the precious metal was also being...
