TOKYO- Asian shares advanced and US long-dated bond yields edged up to a five-month high on Wednesday on rising optimism about the global economy and corporate earnings while the yen slipped to a four-year low on the dollar.
Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.8 percent while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.3 percent, led by 0.9 percent gains in Australia.
“Earlier this month, stagflation was the buzzword on Wall Street. But now excessive pessimism is receding, especially after strong US retail sales data on Friday,” said NorihiroFujito, chief investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.
In New York, the benchmark S&P 500 index gained 0.74 percent to finish just 0.4 percent below its early September record close while the CBOE market volatility index fell 0.6 point after earlier hitting 15.57, its lowest level since mid-August.
“Tech shares and other high-growth shares that would have been sold on rising bond yields are rallying, which clearly shows that there is now strong optimism on upcoming earnings,” Fujito said.
Earning reports will be in full swings in many countries over coming weeks. Dutch chip-making machine maker ASML Holdings and Tesla are among those that will release results later on Wednesday.
The positive mood saw US bond yields rising further, with the 10-year US Treasuries yield climbing to 1.662 percent, a high last seen in May. – Reuters
