Asian equity markets follow Wall St as Omicron fears relief

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets rose yesterday after Wall Street hit a new high as fears over the Omicron variant of the coronavirus eased.

Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney advanced. Shanghai refused.

Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index rose 0.6 percent on Thursday during its last trading session in the United States (US) before Christmas.

Investor fears mounted as ommicron spread, but eased after authorities said it could cause minor illnesses. US President Joe Biden called for more vaccinations and testing, but announced no plans for travel restrictions.

Omicron looks like a “short-term disruption” rather than a “destructive headwind that is knocking the economy off course,” Oanda’s Edward Moya said in a report. “The economic recovery in the US in 2022 still looks very strong.”

The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.8 percent to 3,615.03 points, while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained less than 0.1 percent to 28,821.35. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 0.1 percent to 23,222.74 points. The Kospi in Seoul rose 0.6 percent to 3,017.27 points and the S&P-ASX 200 in Sydney was 0.5 percent higher at 7,425.30.

The markets in New Zealand and Southeast Asia also improved. Singapore was closed for Christmas.

On Wall Street, S&P rose to 4,725.79, surpassing the record set on December 10. The index ended 2.3 percent for the week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6 percent to 35,950.56 and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.8 percent to 15,653.37.

The surge in Omicron cases weighed on Wall Street as investors tried to gauge the impact on 2022 corporate earnings. Governments in Asia and Europe have tightened travel controls or rolled back plans to ease curbs already in place.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that US consumer spending rose 5.7 percent in November from a year earlier, the fastest pace in 39 years.

Inflation is also at a four-decade high, prompting the Federal Reserve to signal it will accelerate the withdrawal of the economic stimulus that has boosted stock prices.

The Labor Department said the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week, reflecting a strong recovery in the labor market. In energy markets, Brent oil lost 34 cents to $76.30 a barrel in London.

The US markets were closed for Christmas.

The dollar fell to JPY114.33 from JPY114.46 on Thursday. The euro retreated from USD 1.1334 to USD 1.1330.