Major Gulf markets gain
Major stock markets in the Gulf rose in early trade on Tuesday, on course to recover some losses as fears of wider geopolitical strife eased.
Iran said on Friday that it had no plan to retaliate following an apparent Israeli drone attack within its borders, which in turn followed an Iranian missile and drone attack on Israel days before.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index gained 0.6 percent, with Saudi Aramco advancing 0.5 percent, after the oil giant said it is in talks to acquire a 10 percent stake in China’s Hengli Petrochemical.
The deal would further bolster Aramco’s growing downstream presence in China.
Dubai’s main share index rose 0.5 percent, led by a 1 percent gain in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties.
Meanwhile, banks and finance companies in the United Arab Emirates may defer personal and car loan installments for six months to help deal with the repercussions of last week’s storm, the UAE central bank said on Monday.
Asian shares rise on tech boost
Asian stocks rose on Wednesday, tracking Wall Street, as an after-hours surge in shares of EV maker Tesla following its promise of new models, and upbeat earnings from some U.S. companies lifted risk sentiment.
The yen was rooted near 34-year lows, keeping traders wary of possible intervention from Tokyo.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 1.55 percent, having climbed 1 percent on Tuesday, as stocks rebounded from last week’s steep selloff. Japan’s Nikkei surged 2 percent.
South Korean shares post biggest daily gain in a month
South Korean shares posted their biggest daily rise in a month on Wednesday, as chip and battery makers rallied on demand hopes. The won firmed, while the benchmark bond yield rose.
The benchmark KOSPI closed up 52.73 points, or 2.01 percent, at 2,675.75, logging its biggest rise since March 21.
Chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 4.11 percent and peer SK Hynix gained 5.15 percent, after U.S. chipmaker Texas Instruments flagged stronger-than-expected revenue for the second quarter.
Australia shares end flat
Australian shares ended flat on Wednesday, as gains in financials and gold stocks were offset by losses in the mining and technology companies, and as higher-than-expected inflation all but killed hopes for interest rate cuts this year.
The S&P/ASX 200 benchmark index closed flat at 7,683 points. The benchmark rose 0.5 percent on Tuesday.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics released data that the consumer price index rose 1 percent in the first quarter, above market forecasts of 0.8 percent, a disappointing result for policymakers that led markets to abandon hopes for any rate cuts this year.
Tokyo stocks end sharply higher
Tokyo stocks ended sharply higher on Wednesday after Wall Street rose for a second straight session on good corporate earnings.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 2.42 percent, or 907.92 points, to end at 38,460.08, while the broader Topix index added 1.67 percent, or 44.50 points, to 2,710.73.
The dollar fetched 154.87 yen, against 154.83 yen late Tuesday in New York.
Indian shares inch up
Indian shares inched higher on Wednesday, led by gains in metals and auto stocks, with the focus on quarterly results from multiple Nifty 50 companies this week.
The NSE Nifty 50 was up 0.2 percent at 22,405.8 as of 9:25 a.m. IST, while the S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.24 percent to 73,884.
The metals index rose 0.5 percent, while auto stocks rose 0.4 percent.
Tata Consumer Products fell 4.2 percent, leading losses in the Nifty 50 index after its fourth-quarter revenue missed analysts’ estimates.
Asian shares rose on Wednesday following gains in the U.S. markets, where strong earnings from some companies lifted investor sentiment after concerns from the Middle East ebbed.
Nifty 50 constituents Hindustan Unilever, LTIMindtree and Axis Bank will report results on Wednesday, while Bajaj Finance, Maruti Suzuki will report earnings later this week.
China stocks dragged down
China stocks closed down on Tuesday, dragged lower by cyclical shares such as metals, while technology companies boosted Hong Kong shares.
Non-ferrous metals companies led the declines in China, slumping 4.5 percent, while coal-related stocks dropped 2.4 percent.
Tech shares led gains in Hong Kong, with delivery giant Meituan and e-commerce giant JD.com up 8.0 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively.
UBS strategists upgraded MSCI China equities to “overweight” as the index has a higher weight in consumption, where they see early signs of improvement, and has been little affected by the weak property sector.
At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was down 0.74 percent at 3,021.98. The blue-chip CSI300 index was down 0.7 percent, with its financial sector sub-index lower by 0.09 percent, the consumer staples sector up 0.96 percent, the real estate index down 1.07 percent and the healthcare sub-index up 1.23 percent.
Nikkei rises
Japan’s Nikkei share average rose on Tuesday, buoyed by Wall Street’s rally overnight, although concerns about big tech earnings and tensions in the Middle East capped gains. The Nikkei ended the day up 0.3 percent at 37,552. 16. Notching a second consecutive session of gains after slumping to a 10-week low on Friday. Trading was choppy in Tuesday’s morning session, with the index gaining 1 percent before retreating briefly into negative territory. However, the afternoon was calm with the index tracking mainly sideways. The broader Topix finished up 0.14 percent. All three of the main US stock benchmarks rallied on Monday, rebounding from big losses the previous week. However, Tesla shares dropped 3.4 percent following price cuts in a number of its major markets. The electric vehicle maker is one of the so-called Magnificent Seven group of tech giants that will report earnings this week, along with Meta Platforms, Alphabet and Microsoft.