Asian stocks edged higher on Monday as China’s weekend interest rate cut partially offset soft U.S. data, while the dollar hit a five-week high against the euro. China on Saturday stepped up its easing tempo and cut its lending and deposit rates as the world’s second largest economy tries to ward off deflation.
Australian shares posted some of the biggest gains in Asia following the China rate cut, gaining 0.8 percent .AXJO after touching a seven-year peak as resource shares surged. But the impact from the weekend easing only had a limited effect on the region’s overall markets.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.1 percent. Tokyo’s Nikkei .N225 crawled up 0.3 percent and Chinese and South Korean stocks also posted comparable modest gains. Equity markets were also cautious after revised data on Friday showed U.S. gross domestic product expanded at a slower pace in the fourth quarter than initially thought, and the University of Michigan’s final February reading on U.S. consumer sentiment slipped from an 11-year high but topped expectations.
Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.
Latest posts by marketpulsefxstaff (see all)
- Oil Remains Near Multi-Month Lows - 6 August 2015
- U.S. Dollar Higher on Recent Data - 6 August 2015
- Greece’s PM Tsipras: Loan Deal with Lenders Close - 6 August 2015