TOKYO — Asian shares largely rose on Monday as investors looked ahead to earnings reports from major global companies and a consumer prices report that will provide a gauge for U.S. inflation.
The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.3% to 39,505.33 in morning trading. Sydney’s S&The P/ASX 200 rose 0.3% to 7,798.10. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3% to 2,723.54. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.8% to 16,856.06, while the Shanghai Composite was little changed, rising less than 0.1% to 3,071.13.
“However, as risk sentiment appears to be recovering from earlier turmoil, gains may still be somewhat muted as the run-up to this week’s key US consumer price index could raise some concerns,” said Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at IG.
The US government will release its March report on consumer prices later this week.
Wall Street ended last week with a rally after a surprisingly strong US jobs report. The S&The P500 rose 1.1%, recovering most of the previous day’s losses and closing in on last week’s record high. The benchmark index still posted its first weekly loss in three weeks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% and the Nasdaq composite gained 1.2%. Technology companies accounted for much of the rally.
U.S. employers added a surprisingly strong 303,000 workers to their payrolls in March, the government reported Friday. The strong labor market has contributed to consumer spending growth and corporate profit growth, leading to strong economic growth overall.
Treasury yields rose on Friday after the jobs report. The yield on ten-year government bonds rose from 4.31% just before the publication of the report to 4.40%. The two-year yield, which depends more on Fed expectations, rose to 4.75% from 4.65% just before the report.
The Fed’s interest rate remains at its highest level in two decades, following historic rate hikes aimed at curbing inflation.
Strong employment and consumer spending have raised concerns about inflation below 3%. Moving toward the Fed’s target 2% rate won’t be easy.
All in all, the S&The P500 rose 57.13 points to 5,204.34 on Friday. The Dow Jones added 307.06 points to 38,904.04 and the Nasdaq gained 199.44 points to 16,248.52.
Analysts also say energy prices have risen recently, a sore point for economies like Japan, which imports almost all its oil, although the country reversed course early Monday.
The upward pressure is further increased by signs of economic recovery in several regions, which will increase energy consumption. Supply concerns and political tensions also tend to push up prices.
U.S. crude fell $1.27 to $85.64 a barrel. The stock was up 0.4% on Friday. Brent crude, the international standard, fell $1.41 to $89.76 a barrel.
In currency trading, the US dollar rose from 151.61 yen to 151.70 Japanese yen. The euro was at $1.0842, little changed from $1.0841.
