SYDNEY: Asian shares advanced on Wednesday, capping a year of brisk artificial intelligence-driven gains, while commodities such as gold and silver extended their bullish run to new all-time highs as 2025 draws to a close.
Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 notched a closing record as the elusive Santa Claus rally finally set in. U.S. data showing the economy expanded at a much faster-than-expected clip in the third quarter boosted risk sentiment but weighed on bonds.
Gold and silver were again the big movers in early Asian trade. Spot gold prices climbed 0.8% to another all-time high of $4,524 per ounce, bringing the gain for this year to 72%. Silver jumped 1.2% to a record $72.27 per ounce, and was set for an annual rise of almost 150%, its best year ever.
Stocks in the region were slightly higher, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.3%. The index is up 26% for the year, its best performance since 2017.
EURO STOXX 50 futures, Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures were little changed amid thin liquidity.
Japan's Nikkei rose 0.4% and was up 26% this year. South Korea outperformed the rest of Asia for the year with a meteoric surge of 72%.
"As equity markets enter the fourth year of a bull market, our underlying market call remains constructive," said Scott Chronert, a U.S. equity strategist at Citi, who is tipping another year of upsides for equities on earnings growth and high valuations.
"Yet, high performance dispersion within themes, sectors, and market cap is expected."
In the foreign exchange market, the yen gained for a third straight session amid intervention risk from Japanese authorities. The dollar lost 0.3% to 155.78 yen, retreating from the 158 level zone that drew intervention in the past.
The euro was largely steady at $1.18, having rallied 14% this year. Against its major peers, the dollar was down about 10% this year.
Treasuries rallied this year on the resumption of Fed rate cuts. Two-year Treasury yields were steady at 3.532%, having fallen by 72 basis points this year, while the 10-year yield traded at 4.1589%, down 42 bps for the year.
Oil prices held steady in early trade but were set for a third straight year of losses. Brent crude futures were flat at $62.41 a barrel, but were down 16% for the year. - Reuters
