- Following U.S. stock indices that hovered around record highs, Asian stocks rose on Monday.
- Following the crash of a helicopter, investors’ attention turned to the Middle East, driving up oil prices and U.S. futures trading.
- The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo increased by 0.7% to 39,067.45, and the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gained by 0.6% to 7,864.30.
Following U.S. stock indices that hovered around record highs and saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average close above 40,000 for the first time, Asian stocks rose on Monday.
Following the crash of a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and other officials in the country’s northwest on Sunday, investors’ attention turned to the Middle East, driving up oil prices and U.S. futures trading.
Asian stocks
With the central bank announcing fresh measures to boost the real estate sector, such as lowering the minimum down payment requirements for home loans, lowering mortgage interest rates for both first- and second-home purchases, and doing away with a mortgage rate floor, China’s market maintained its gains from Monday.
The property index of the Hong Kong Hang Seng increased by 0.7% in afternoon trading, bringing the total up to 19,680.31. Among the many financially distressed developers was Country Garden Holdings, which increased by 18.5%. At 3,172.35, the Shanghai Composite Index increased by 0.6%.
As anticipated, China’s central bank maintained the 3.45% and 3.95% one- and five-year loan prime rates, respectively. In China, the majority of new and existing loans are measured against the one-year LPR, although the pricing of property mortgages is influenced by the five-year rate.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo increased by 0.7% to 39,067.45, the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gained by 0.6% to 7,864.30, while the Kospi in Korea increased by 0.5% to 2,737.23. Following the inauguration of Lai Ching-te as Taiwan’s new president, the Taiex index saw a 0.1% increase.
A day after the Dow temporarily broke through the 40,000 barrier for the first time, it increased by 0.3% to 40,003.59. The S&P 500 concluded a fourth week of gains, gaining 0.1% to close at 5,303.27. The Nasdaq Composite fell 166.57 points, or 0.1%.
