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Asian Equities Mostly Gain Following Positive Finish in the U.S.

Published 27/04/2018, 03:29 pm
Updated 27/04/2018, 03:39 pm
© Reuters.  Asian equities were mixed in afternoon trade on Friday

© Reuters. Asian equities were mixed in afternoon trade on Friday

Investing.com – Asian equities were mixed in afternoon trade on Friday, with most markets in green except the Chinese. Asian markets opened in green following the solid advances in the U.S. markets overnight and continued to trade broadly in green on Friday afternoon.

Overnight, the Dow gained 0.99% and the S&P 500 rose 1.04% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq powered up 1.64%, thanks to a recovery in tech stocks.

The historical Korean summit added a dose of optimism to the South Korean market, while Bank of Japan dropped a hint of the timeframe for achieving its 2% inflation target in its statement.

South Korea’s Kospi was up 0.62% at 01:00AM ET (05:00 GMT). The high-level summit between North Korea and South Korea on Friday morning tamed the geopolitical tensions in East Asia, lifted up the sentiment for the won and drove the markets in Seoul slightly higher. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un hailed a “new era of peace”, implying the long-term standoff between the two Koreas may come to an end.

Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.5% and rose to a one-week high at noon. Chip-related company Advantest was the best performer, surging 13.35%.

BOJ delivered its much antipated decision on monetary policy in late morning in Asia without mentioing the timeframe for achieving the 2% inflation target. The move suggested that the target will likely remain out of reach in the near future, as the Bank kept its inflation forecast for the next fiscal year unchanged at 1.8%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.33% following its U.S counterparts overnight. Petrol-related stocks saw bulls, with China Petroleum & Chemical Corp Class H (HK:0386) and PetroChina Co Ltd Class H (HK:0857)gaining 3.53% and 2.32% respectively.

However, Chinese equities were not in line with their Asian counterparts and were sliding, with Shanghai Composite down 0.59% and Shenzhen Composite Index down 0.25%. Heavyweight Ping An Insurance Group Co of China Ltd (SS:601318) dropped 6.02%. In addition, China Construction Bank Corp (HK:0939) reported a 5.4% increase in first-quarter net profit.

Down under, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.54%, keeping the bullish trend from the morning.

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