A woman walks past an electronic board showing the stock market indices of various countries outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan. - Reuters
SYDNEY: Stocks in Asia jumped following a strong U.S. session as investors moved past the hurdle of uncertainty presented by America’s midterm elections and saw benefits in Washington’s gridlock.
Equities in Japan led gains, alongside solid rises in Hong Kong and South Korea, and futures indicated the positive risk appetite will flow through to European shares.
Earlier, the S&P 500 Index rose more than 2 percent as investors bet a split Congress dimmed chances President Donald Trump’s signature tax cuts will be reversed while reducing the possibility of major fiscal initiatives that might have pushed up interest rates. The dollar ticked higher and Treasury yields held gains.
With the elections out of the way, attention now turns to Thursday’s Federal Reserve decision, with investors looking for any signals on the pace of policy tightening in 2019. China trade data the same day will be another chance to gauge the impact of the trade war after recent warnings from International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson.
“This election played out exactly like the polls were telling us, which was a reassurance,” Anne Lester, managing director and portfolio manager at JPMorgan Asset Management, told Bloomberg TV in New York.
Elsewhere, U.S. tech stocks, which absorbed the brunt of October’s sell-off, led gains as the Nasdaq 100 surged more than 3 percent. Oil steadied after sliding for eight straight days.
Terminal users can read more in our Markets Live blog. - Bloomberg
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