Global stock markets rose to a record high on Wednesday as bond yields eased after data showed U.S. inflation was not rising wildly as the economy reopens.
Most Asia-Pacific share indexes followed Wall Street higher, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng leading gains in the region, while benchmark U.S. Treasury yields continued their decline, marking a fresh three-week low.
S&P 500 futures pointed to a further 0.1% rise.
· China leads gains in Asia-Pacific as tech shares in Hong Kong rebound
Shares in China led gains in Asia-Pacific during Wednesday trade as Chinese tech stocks listed in the city jumped.
By the market close in mainland China, the Shanghai composite gained 0.6% to 3,416.72 while the Shenzhen component advanced 1.55% to 13,728.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also saw robust gains as it climbed about 1.2%, as of its final hour of trading.
Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese tech firms saw a rebound in Wednesday trade after 12 companies, including Baidu, JD.com and Meituan, signaled compliance with antitrust laws.
In Wednesday afternoon trade, shares of Baidu in Hong Kong were up 3.31% while JD.com gained 2.68% and Meituan surged 3.7%.
That development came just a day after Beijing gave so-called platform companies a month to examine their actions and rectify any anti-competitive practices. Shares of most Chinese tech giants in Hong Kong tumbled on Tuesday amid those regulatory fears.
Elsewhere, the Nikkei 225 in Japan slipped 0.44% on the day to 29,620.99 while the Topix index declined 0.33% to 1,952.18. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.42% to close at 3,182.38.
Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.66% to end its trading day at 7,023.10.
In Southeast Asia, the Straits Times index in Singapore slipped about 0.2% in afternoon trade. That came despite data showing the country’s economy unexpectedly grew 0.2% in the first quarter of 2021 as compared with a year earlier, according to official advance estimates released Wednesday.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares nudged 0.91% higher.
· European markets edge higher with earnings, data and vaccines on the radar
European markets were slightly higher on Wednesday morning as investors monitor economic data and corporate earnings.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 inched 0.1% above the flatline in early trade, with tech stocks gaining 1.2% while telecoms slid 0.6%.
Stocks in Europe received a mildly positive hangover from Asia-Pacific, where Chinese tech shares listed in Hong Kong bounced on Wednesday after 12 major companies signaled compliance with antitrust laws.
Stateside, futures tied to the major indexes were little changed in early premarket trade after the S&P 500 closed at a new record high. Investors stateside will be looking out for some major earnings releases on Wednesday, with banking giants JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo all due to report.
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