Asian markets mostly rose and the dollar extended its run against the yen Tuesday after Wall Street started the week on another high.
Tokyo rose 0.64 percent, Hong Kong was 0.36 percent higher, Shanghai was up 0.16 percent and Seoul and Sydney were flat.
Sentiment remains buoyed by improving numbers coming out of the United States, with Friday’s upbeat jobs numbers fuelling optimism over the health of the world’s biggest economy.
“Expectations of a US economic recovery are strong,” Daisaku Ueno, senior foreign exchange strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley told Dow Jones Newswires. The jobs data “changed the picture for the dollar/yen.”
On Monday, Wall Street continued its recent run of form, with the Dow up 0.35 percent, a seventh straight advance and a fifth consecutive record close.
The broader S&P 500 gained 0.32 percent to sit just nine points below its own all-time closing high set on October 9, 2007. The Nasdaq added 0.26 percent.
On currency markets, the dollar advanced further against the yen, with the Japanese unit facing continued pressure from expectations that the Bank of Japan will further loosen monetary policy.
The dollar was at 96.60 yen in Tokyo trade from 96.26 yen in New York late Monday.
The euro stood at $1.3033 and 125.90 yen, compared with $1.3046 and 125.59 yen in New York.
Oil prices fell, with New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in April, easing six cents to $92.00 a barrel and Brent North Sea crude for April delivery dipping 14 cents to $110.08.
Gold was at $1,581.20 at 0200 GMT compared with $1,578.34 late Monday.
Source:
