Asian Markets Track Wall Street Higher

(RTTNews) - Following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Friday, as traders reacted to the prospects of a rate cut by the US Fed early next year after some US data showing a drop in economic growth and an uptick in jobless claims. Asian markets ended mostly lower on Thursday.

Traders are likely to keep a close eye on US report on personal income and spending, which includes readings on inflation said to be preferred by the Fed that could influence the outlook on the Fed's monetary policy.

Recouping some of the losses in the previous session, the Australian stock market is trading slightly higher on Friday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying above the 7,500 level, with gains in technology stocks partially offset by losses in gold miner stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 4.90 points or 0.07 percent to 7,509.00, after touching a high of 7,521.90 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 7.90 points or 0.10 percent to 7,735.70. Australian markets ended notably lower on Thursday.

Among major miners, Rio Tinto and BHP Group are edging up 0.3 to 0.4 percent each, while Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are gaining more than 1 percent each. Oil stocks are mixed. Woodside Energy and Beach energy are edging up 0.1 to 0.5 percent each, while Santos is edging down 0.3 percent and Origin Energy is down more than 1 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is edging up 0.3 percent, WiseTech Global is gaining more than 1 percent, Xero is adding almost 1 percent and Zip is advancing more than 3 percent, while Appen is declining almost 2 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and National Australia Bank are edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each. ANZ Banking is flat. Gold miners are weak. Northern Star Resources and Newmont are edging down 0.2 to 0.3 percent each, while Evolution Mining is losing more than 1 percent and Resolute Mining is down almost 2 percent. Gold Road Resources is flat.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.678 on Friday.

Recouping some of the losses in the previous session, the Japanese stock market is trading modestly higher on Friday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark Nikkei 225 is moving a tad above the 33,200 level, as traders reacted to domestic data that showed inflation in Japan continued to ease in November.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 33,204.89, up 64.42 points or 0.19 percent, after touching a high of 33,375.19 earlier. Japanese stocks closed sharply lower on Thursday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging up 0.4 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging down 0.2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is edging up 0.1 percent, while Toyota is edging down 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is edging down 0.3 percent and Screen Holdings is losing almost 2 percent, while Tokyo Electron is adding almost 1 percent.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, Mizuho Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are gaining more than 2 percent each.

Among major exporters, Sony and Canon are edging down 0.3 percent each, while Mitsubishi Electric and Panasonic are gaining almost 1 percent each.

Among other major gainers, Shiseido is gaining more than 4 percent, while Sumitomo Pharma and Suzuki Motor are adding more than 3 percent each. Nippon Paper Industries, Shin-Etsu Chemical and Odakyu Electric Railway are advancing almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, there are no other major losers

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 142 yen-range on Friday.

Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.1 and 0.7 percent each. Malaysia is bucking the trend and is down 0.1 percent. On Wall Street, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Thursday following the sharp pullback seen late in Wednesday's session. The major averages all moved notably higher, largely offsetting yesterday's steep losses.

The major averages saw further upside going into the close, reaching new highs for the session. The Dow advanced 322.35 points or 0.9 percent to 37,404.35, the Nasdaq surged 185.92 points or 1.3 percent to 14,963.84 and the S&P 500 jumped 48.40 points or 1.0 percent to 4,746.75.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index edged down by 0.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index both dipped by 0.3 percent.

Crude oil futures snapped a three-day winning streak on Thursday after Angola's decision to exit OPEC raised concerns about the oil cartel's ability to support prices by curbing output. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February ended down $0.33 at $73.8 a barrel.