Asian Stock Market: Tracks Wall Street’s gains amid a quiet session
|- Asian shares trade positive, with lower pace, during pre-NFP silence.
- RBA SOMP and Governor Philip Lowe confirmed no rate hike till at least 2024.
- Stimulus hopes, vaccine news keep buyers hopeful ahead of the key US data.
Equities in Asia remain upbeat, while also portraying a general pre-NFP trading lull, on Friday. Although feeds from Australia remained quite active, overall inactivity had to follow Wall Street’s gains while keeping buyers hopeful before the US Nonfarm Payrolls.
As a result, MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rises 0.50% while Japan’s Nikkei 225 rises 1.30% by press time. It should be noted that AstraZeneca’s likely approval from the Japanese drug regulator favored markets in Asia major off-late.
Australia’s ASX 200 follows Japan’s Nikkei 225 even as the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) quarterly Statement of Monetary Policy (SOMP) portrayed sluggish recovery moves and defied the rate hike calls. Earlier in the day, RBA Governor Philip Lowe spoke the same while the final reading of December’s Retail Sales for Australia confirmed over 4.0% contraction versus 7.1% previous gains.
New Zealand’s NZX 50 stays behind in the run with 0.39% gains while stocks in China, Hong Kong, and South Korea played the same tune. Further, Indonesia’s IDX Composite bears the burden of downbeat GDP data but prints a 0.10% gain by the press time.
Also on the slow bull ride were India’s BSE Sensex and S&P 500 Futures. Though, it should be noted that the US markets closed strong on Thursday with S&P 500 and Nasdaq refreshing record-high closing level.
Considering the lack of major data/events during Asia, coupled with no major chatters from the US over the stimulus or market frenzy, the pre-NFP mood is likely to stay intact. Though US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s readiness to closely analyze markets in search of retail rush clues may probe the bulls before the key data.
Read: Nonfarm Payrolls Preview: Dollar needs a strong number to keep rallying
Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers.