Asia report: Buoyant global sentiment sees most markets rise

(Sharecast News) - Asian markets surged on Friday, driven by a broad rally that was inspired by strong gains on Wall Street. Japan's benchmark index had its best day in four years, closing up more than 1,300 points to lead the region's gains.

"Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Friday, buoyed by the positive sentiment from Wall Street's overnight performance," said TickMill market analyst Patrick Munnelly.

"Stronger-than-expected US retail sales and weekly jobless claims data have helped alleviate concerns about a recession in the world's largest economy.

"However, this positive data is likely to prompt the US Federal Reserve to implement a smaller interest rate cut in September."

Munnelly noted that the Japanese stock market was trading significantly higher, building on gains from the last four sessions.

"The benchmark Nikkei 225 is soaring, rising above the 38,000 handle, with gains seen across all sectors, led by index heavyweights and financial and technology stocks."

Positive sentiment sees most markets rise

Japan's Nikkei 225 led the charge, soaring 3.64% to close at 38,062.67, marking its best weekly performance in four years.

The robust increase was underpinned by gains in major stocks like Fujikura, which jumped 11.41%, Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma, up 10.36%, and Hitachi, which rose by 7.77%.

Tokyo's broader Topix index also climbed, rising 2.99% to 2,678.60.

China's markets, however, showed mixed results, as the Shanghai Composite edged up slightly by 0.07% to 2,879.43, while the Shenzhen Component slipped by 0.24% to 8,349.87.

The gains in Shanghai were buoyed by rises from the likes of Jinan High Tech Development, Tianjin Realty Development Group and Mubang High Tech, which all jumped over 10%.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index advanced by 1.88% to 17,430.16, with strong performances from JD.com, which surged 8.91%, and JD Health International, up 8.22%.

Galaxy Entertainment Group also added 5.58% to its value.

South Korea's Kospi climbed 1.99% to 2,697.23, buoyed by a 7.94% rise in Yuhan and similar gains in Hanmi Semiconductor and SK Square.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 saw a 1.34% increase to 7,971.10, led by ZIP Co, which skyrocketed 13.47%, and strong performances from Guzman y Gomez and James Hardie Industries.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 posted a modest gain of 0.14% to close at 12,727.75, with Synlait Milk leading the pack, soaring 23.33%.

Scales Corporation and A2 Milk Company also contributed to the positive momentum.

In currency markets, the dollar was broadly weaker, last trading down 0.39% on the yen at JPY 148.70.

It was off 0.24% against the Aussie at AUD 1.5087, and retreated 0.51% from the Kiwi, changing hands at NZD 1.6620.

On the oil front, Brent crude futures were last down 0.52% on ICE at $80.62, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate lost 0.67% to $77.64 per barrel.

Singapore exports surge in July, RBA governor pours cold water on cut hopes

On the data front, Singapore's economy showed robust growth in July, as non-oil domestic exports surged by 15.7% year-on-year, a sharp recovery from June's 8.8% decline.

The impressive rebound far exceeded the modest 1.2% growth anticipated by a Reuters poll.

Singapore's total trade grew by 13.7% in July, building on a 1.2% increase in June, as both exports and imports rose.

Down under, Reserve Bank of Australia governor Michelle Bullock addressed market speculation about potential rate cuts, emphasising that it was still "premature" to consider such a move.

Despite recent inflation outcomes in the US and Australia prompting markets to anticipate earlier cuts, Bullock said inflation remained "too high" and was unlikely to fall within the RBA's target range of 2% to 3% until the end of next year.

According to CNBC, she noted that while the outlook remains uncertain, the central bank's board did not foresee being in a position to lower rates in the near term.

Investor sentiment in the region was bolstered overnight by positive economic news from the United States.

US retail sales in July rose by 1%, significantly exceeding the Dow Jones estimate of a 0.3% increase.

Additionally, weekly jobless claims fell, further supporting the upbeat mood in global markets.

Market participants were also awaiting the release of Taiwan and Hong Kong's second-quarter GDP data, which were expected after market hours.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.