Asia Shares Rise On Strength Of Wall Street Rally

Asian shares rose Monday as investor sentiment received a big boost from the rally last week on Wall Street, despite worries about the more contagious coronavirus delta variant not only in the region but across the world. Yuri Kageyama reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Photo Insert: An abstract of a stock market chart in Japan

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.7% to 27,476.54 in morning trading. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.3% to 3,101.19. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.3% to 7,483.60. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 2.4% to 25,441.00, while the Shanghai Composite added 1.1% to 3,465.35.

The recent decline in Japanese shares provided an opportunity for bargain hunters. Toyota Motor Corp. shares rose more than 3% in morning trading in Tokyo. Other shares gaining included Nissan Motor Co., Sony Corp., and Nintendo Co.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 ended the week up 35.87 points, or 0.8%, at 4,441.67. The benchmark index is less than 1% from the all-time high it set on Monday last week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 225.96 points, or 0.7%, to 35,120.08. The Nasdaq composite picked up 172.87 points, or 1.2%, to 14,714.66. The Dow and Nasdaq also posted weekly losses.

The US Federal Reserve’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, later this week could provide Wall Street with more insight into what the Fed may do about inflation.

Last week, minutes from the most recent Fed meeting showed that officials had discussed reducing the central bank’s bond-buying program later this year to start winding down some of the emergency measures that were implemented during the pandemic. But they stopped short of setting a firm timeline.

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