Asian Shares Rise After Wall Street Nears Record

Asian shares advanced on Thursday following Wall Street’s climb to a near-record high, with Tokyo’s benchmark surging to its highest level since 1990, as reported by Yuri Kageyama for the Associated Press (AP).

Shares rose on Wall Street on Wednesday as traders locked in their final moves ahead of a report on Thursday on inflation.

Shares rose on Wall Street on Wednesday as traders locked in their final moves ahead of a report on Thursday on inflation, which could show whether all the excitement that has vaulted stocks toward records is warranted.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 4,783.45, just 0.3% below its all-time high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5% to 37,695.73, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.8% to 14,969.65, as reported by Stam Choe for AP.

The yen weakened against the US dollar, boosting export-related shares in a New Year rally that took the benchmark Nikkei 225 to 35,027.70, up 1.7%. Toyota Motor Corp. stock rose more than 4%, while Honda Motor Co. added 3%.

Sony Group Corp. rose 3.5%, and Hitachi gained 4%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.4% to 16,156.90, while the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.4% to 2,867.72.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 7,501.30. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3% to 2,548.24. The South Korean central bank kept its monetary policy unchanged at a policy meeting, as inflation remained above the 3% range.

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