Asian stocks higher after Wall Street rises to new record
BEIJING (AP) — Asian stocks were mostly higher Tuesday after Wall Street rose to a new record.
Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and South Korea all advanced.
Overnight, Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index closed 0.7% higher. Investors were encouraged by company earnings, news that a surge in coronavirus cases is easing, progress in distributing vaccines and the possibility of U.S. government stimulus.
Despite concern prices might be rising too fast, “the momentum behind this reflation trade remains a force to reckon with,” said Jingyi Pan of IG in a report.
The Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.2% to 3,576.06 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained 0.1% to 29,418.23. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 0.5% to 29,462.08.
The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.4% to 3,102.72 and Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 shed 0.6% to 6,837.80.
India's Sensex opened up 0.4% at 51,582.30. New Zealand retreated while Southeast Asian markets advanced.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 28.76 points to 3,915.59. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8% to 31,385.76. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1% to 13,987.64.
In Washington, President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats appear to be moving forward with a $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus plan. That includes a rise in the federally required minimum wage and cash aid to households.
“Market participants doubled down on fiscal stimulus bets” after U.S. Federal Reserve officials downplayed concerns the spending might fuel inflation, said Mizuho Bank in a report.
Tesla rose 1.3% after the company said it purchased $1.5 billion in Bitcoin and pIans to allow customers to pay for their electric vehicles with the digital currency. Bitcoin was up 13.2% to $43,252, according to digital currency brokerage Coinbase.
In another sign of optimism,...
