Asian shares advanced on Thursday, tracking a rally on Wall Street following tame inflation data that raised hopes for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next week. The European Central Bank is also expected to cut rates, as inflation has fallen to target levels and economic growth is slowing in the euro currency countries. In China, shares rose as Beijing set economic plans and targets for the coming year.
The government announced plans to expand trial private pension programs nationwide, starting Dec. 15. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong jumped 1.2% to 20,397.05, and the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.9% to 3,461.50.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index advanced 1.2% to 39,849.14, led by the buying of technology shares. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.6% to 2,482.12, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.3% to 8,330.30. Taiwan’s Taiex climbed 0.6%, and the Sensex in India shed 0.3%.
The SET in Bangkok edged 0.1% lower.
Asian markets follow Wall Street gains
U.S. stock indexes resumed climbing on Wednesday after an update on inflation appeared to clear the way for more economic support from the Fed.
The S&P 500 rose 0.8%, breaking its trend of losses over nearly a month. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite surged 1.8% to 20,034.89, marking its first close above 20,000. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.2%.
Inflation in the U.S. ticked up to 2.7% in November from a year earlier, driven by pricier used cars, hotel rooms, and groceries. This indicates that some price pressures remain elevated but not enough to prevent the Fed from cutting interest rates at its meeting next week. Albertsons fell 1.5% after filing a lawsuit against Kroger, alleging that the latter did not do enough to win regulatory clearance for their proposed $24.6 billion merger agreement.
The merger was nixed by authorities in Oregon and Washington a day earlier, as critics argued it would hurt competition. In early dealings on Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 28 cents to $70.57 per barrel, while Brent crude oil gained 27 cents to $73.79 per barrel. The U.S. dollar rose to 152.52 Japanese yen from 152.46 yen, and the euro rose to $1.0518 from $1.0496.
