ASIAN SHARES UP AS HOPES FOR GLOBAL ECONOMIC REBOUND BLOSSOM

Asian shares rose Friday, February 5, 2021, echoing a rally on Wall Street, as hopes grew for a gradual global economic recovery from the damage of the coronavirus pandemic, Yuri Kageyama reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 surged 1.3% in afternoon trading to 28,716.68. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.1% to 6,840.50, and South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.7% to 3,107.88. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 0.8% to 29,337.67, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.5% to 3,520.70.

Venkateswaran Lavanya of Mizuho Bank in Singapore said Asian markets are getting a lift from positive employment data from the US, which has set off a mood of “confidence about the US economy getting back on its feet.”

Wall Street was cheered by strong company earnings and optimism that Washington can reach a deal for another round of fiscal stimulus for millions of Americans.

The S&P 500 index rose 1.1% to 3,871.74. It was the index’s fourth-straight gain. The Dow Jones industrial average picked up 1.1%, to 31,055.86.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.2%, to 13,777.74, also an all-time high. The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks climbed 2%, to 2,202.42.

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