Asian shares track Wall St rally on hopes for stimulus

Asian shares track Wall St rally on hopes for stimulus

SeattlePI.com

Published

Shares rose in Asia on Thursday after Wall Street rallied on expectations of more stimulus for the economy, despite chaotic scenes in Washington when Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol.

After Congress reconvened following the disruptions to the process for recognizing the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, U.S. futures also were higher, with the contract for the S&P 500 up 0.6%. The future for the Dow industrials gained 0.5%.

Investors expect that Democratic control of both houses of Congress, after Democrats won two runoff senatorial elections in Georgia, has raised the potential for increased spending on infrastructure and other areas under President-elect Joe Biden's administration.

With pandemic restrictions being reinstated in many places as coronavirus caseloads rise amid faltering rollouts of COVID-19 vaccines, economists and investors have been hoping for more economic aid for Americans and businesses. A strong U.S. economy is needed to help drive a global recovery from the worst downturn in decades.

“What will matter most this year is the vaccination roll out and the ability to achieve herd immunity and more government spending. On the first point, President-elect Joe Biden is likely to aggressively accelerate the rollout from Jan. 20, which is positive for risk.

The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo gained 1.8% to 27,532.74. South Korea's Kospi jumped 2.6% to 3,045.90 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia advanced 1.8% to 6,724.30. India's Sensex rose 0.6% and shares in most other markets were higher.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index declined, losing 0.4% to 27,578.08 a day after dozens of pro-democracy figures were arrested under a national security law imposed by Beijing.

Shares in Hong Kong also were pulled lower after the New York Stock...

Full Article