By Daniel Inman
Asian stocks rose Thursday, with the Nikkei Average hitting a
three-month high, as investors were reassured by the Federal
Reserve's commitment to low interest rates.
The S&P 500 (SPX) closed Wednesday at a record after Federal
Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen gave a relatively upbeat assessment
of the economy. Speaking after the central bank's latest policy
meeting, Ms. Yellen said that interest rates would stay low for a
relatively long period.
The dollar fell against major currencies, as investors who had
expected the Fed to shift to an accelerated schedule for the
increase in interest rates were disappointed.
The dollar (USDJPY) softened 0.2% against the yen on Wednesday,
and was steady during Asian trade -- last at Yen101.93.
Japan's Nikkei Average shrugged off the stronger yen, typically
a headwind for stocks in Tokyo, and was last up 1.4% at 15,328.03
-- the first time that the index has traded above 15,300 since
March 7.
"The Fed didn't say much that the market hadn't already
perceived; hence U.S. stocks' generally positive reaction
overnight," said Nicholas Smith, equity strategist at CLSA. "More
interesting is the fact of Japan shares' divergence from the
dollar/yen market gyrations; the market is up strongly despite a
weaker dollar."
Shares in Sharp Corp. (SHCAF) jumped 4.5% in Tokyo after the
firm announced that it had developed an LCD panel that can be cut
into any shape, which could potentially pave the way for a wide
range of applications. Also in Japan, shares in Nippon Sheet Glass
surged 14.5% after Nomura Securities upgraded the company to buy
from neutral.
Also supporting regional sentiment were comments from Chinese
Premier Li Keqiang that the Chinese economy would avoid a hard
landing to hit its 7.5% growth target this year. This helped
commodity stocks, especially in Australia, where the S&P/ASX
200 added 1%.
Strong gains in miners helped the Australian benchmark move
higher, bouncing back from declines in recent sessions. Spot
iron-ore prices rose 1% to $90.30, helping BHP Billiton (BHP) and
Fortescue Metals Group (FSUMY) gain 2.3% and 3.4% respectively.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea's Kospi was up 0.3%, the
Philippines' PSEi l ost 0.5%, and Singapore's Straits Times Index
added 0.1%.
In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.1%, and the
Shanghai Composite was also 0.2% lower.
More MarketWatch news:
Asia Stocks blog: Japan gets post-Fed boost
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