Asian markets follow Wall St up but headed for annual loss

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets followed Wall Street higher on Friday following encouraging U.S. employment data but were headed for double-digit losses for the year.

Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney advanced. Oil prices edged higher.

Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index gained Thursday after the number of people applying for unemployment benefits rose only slightly last week despite repeated interest rate hikes to cool inflation by slowing economic activity.

“Considering the market news was sparse, the shift higher has the hallmarks of a dead cat bounce,” said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management in a report.

The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.6% to 3,092.50. The Chinese benchmark is on track to end 2022 down more than 14% after the world's second-largest economy was depressed by anti-virus controls and a crackdown on corporate debt.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 0.3% to 26,181.11. It is headed for an annual loss of almost 10%. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 0.8% to 19,918.58. It is off more than 14% this year.

Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 was 0.5% higher at 7,056.60. India's Sensex opened up 0.4% at 61,133.88. New Zealand declined while Southeast Asian markets rose.

South Korean markets were closed for a holiday. The country's benchmark Kospi index is headed for a loss of more than 25% for the year.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 1.7% to 3,849.28. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1% to 33,220.80. The Nasdaq composite added 2.6% to 10,478.09.

Each major U.S. index is headed for a loss in December. Companies in the S&P 500 took in record profits in 2022 but the index will end the year down about 20%, which would be the benchmark's biggest annual decline since 2008.

Investors are uneasy about a string of interest rate hikes by the Federal...