Asian-Pacific markets opened higher on Wednesday, buoyed by continued gains in global markets overnight.
By 11:40 am AEDT (12:40 am GMT) the ASX 200 rose 0.6%, South Korea’s Kospi 200 gained 0.5% Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.2%.
U.S. stocks extended last week’s rally following President Donald Trump’s inauguration. While delaying the implementation of potential tariffs, Trump signed a series of executive orders and promised business-friendly policies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 538 points, or 1.2%, to close at 44,025. The S&P 500 added 0.9% to end at 6,049, and the Nasdaq rose 0.6% to 19,756.
Among S&P 500 companies, NVIDIA Corp gained 2.3%, 3M rose 4.2% after issuing an optimistic sales and profit forecast, and Charles Schwab surged 5.9% following a 76% increase in quarterly profit.
Trump indicated that 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada were under consideration for February 1, citing border policies, and mentioned potential tariffs on China if a TikTok deal is not approved.
In commodities, Brent crude oil dipped 0.9% to US$79.46 a barrel, while gold climbed 1.3% to US$2,743.99 per ounce.
In Asia, Chinese markets closed mixed, with the Shanghai Composite slipping 0.1% to 3,242.6 and the Shenzhen Composite gaining 0.3% to 1,939.7. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced 0.9% to 20,106.6.
India’s markets declined, as the BSE Sensex fell 1.6% to 75,838.4.
European markets saw modest gains. The FTSE 100 in the U.K. rose 0.3% to 8,548.3. Germany’s DAX added 0.2% to 21,042, and France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.5% to 7,771.
