Asian shares track tech, energy-led gains on Wall Street
BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced in Asia on Thursday after a day of modest gains on Wall Street, led by buying of energy and technology stocks. Oil prices also rose.
Benchmarks rose in Tokyo, Sydney and Seoul but fell in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Other regional markets were higher.
In a quiet news week, investors are watching for a U.S. Labor Department report on Friday that economists forecast will show employers added more than 650,000 jobs last month. It is expected to yield fresh clues about the Federal Reserve’s next interest rate policy moves later this month, when the central bank holds its next meeting of policymakers.
Expectations of a strong increase in hiring have stoked worries about inflation and how world central banks may respond to it. The concern is that the global recovery could be hampered if governments and central banks have to withdraw stimulus to combat rising prices.
“Equity markets have taken signs that inflation is on the rise in their stride recently, and we suspect that they will continue to do so for some time yet," Oliver Jones of Capital Economics said in a commentary.
Rapid price increases are outpacing the recovery of demand, partly due to supply bottlenecks, and will likely abate over time, he said.
News reports in Japan said the government is considering extra support for the economy as the country endures another bout of coronavirus outbreaks while it ramps up vaccinations ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, which are due to begin late next month.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index rose 0.4% to 29,058.11, while the Shanghai Composite index lost 0.1% to 3,593.27. South Korea's Kospi jumped 0.8% to 3,251.39, helped by the rally in technology shares, which favor market heavyweights like Samsung Electronics.
The S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.6% to 7,260.00,...