Asian Stocks Aim for Fifth Weekly Gain, Turn Positive for the Year
Asian stock markets advanced on Friday following an oil-driven rally on Wall Street yesterday.
Scorecard
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.6% in early trade, entering positive territory for the year for the first time.
South Korea's Kospi added 0.1% to 1,990.97. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.7% to 20,639.83. China’s Shanghai Composite index rose 1.9% to 2,959.45.
Nikkei bucked the trend and dipped 1.25% as the dollar’s fall against the yen is seen hurting the country’s exporters.
Oil’s more than 50% recovery from an almost 13-year low set in January has helped risk assets stabilize across the globe. Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on further rate hikes prompted investors to rebuild their bets on riskier assets.
(Market News Provided by FXstreet)
